3?5.1     U.S.      rongress.   House,   Conaaittee  on 
un31'if       Foreign  Affairs. 

Foreign  criminals  and  paupers. 


LINCOLN  ROOM 

LMNKRSnV  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


3IEMORIAL 

the  CLiss  of  1901 

founded  h\ 
HARLAN  HOVT  HORNER 

(Old 

HKNRIETTA  CALHOUN  HORNLR 


34th  CoxGRKs,  )    HOUSE  OF  r.KPRESF.NTATIVKS.    (    Report 
1«/  Session.     \  ^  No.  359. 

Un2>l3f  ' 

FOREIGN  CRIMINALS  AND  i'AUPERS. 

[To  accompany  Bill  II.  R.  V2i.] 


ArorsT  10,  1856. 


^Ir.  H.  yi.  Filler,  from  the  Committeo  t»n  Foreign  AfHiirs,  iniule  the 

following 

R  i:  iM)  irr  . 

The  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  ntake  the /oIlowiiKj  report : 

Tlie  su)»jt'ct  relerreil  \o  the  eoiuiiiittee  is  one  (tf  grave  ini])ortance,  as 
alVeeting  nut  only  the  fiscal  allairs  of  the  nation,  bnt  the  morals,  liahits, 
and  character  of  the  people,  and  the  safety  of  t»iir  institutions.     It  has 
accordingly  received  that  careful  consideration  by  the  committee  which 
its  importance  seemed  to  demand.     It  may  he  safely  assumed  that  the 
national  j)rosperitr  of  a  community,  no  matter  what  the  character  or 
form  «»f  its  government,  mainly  depends  on  the  morals,  industry,  and 
frugality  of  its  people,  and  that  the  weakest  and  least  permanent  of 
all  governments  is  that  in  which  indolence  and  vice  are  allowed  to 
tiourish  under  the  name  of  li])erty.     A  nation  of  freemen,  no  matter 
how  great  or  ]»owerl"ul,  cannot  long  continue  as  such  without  religion 
and  morality,  industry  and  frugality;  for  these  are  indispensable  sup- 
ports of  popular  government.     Crime  and  paui)erism  are  the  bane  of 
a  republic,  and  they  cannot  be  too  carefully  considered,  nor  too  strin- 
.r..,,flv-  guarded  against,  if  those  in  autliority  would  be  true  to  the  trust 
;    I        I  in  them  by  their  fellow-citizens.     That  these  evils  have,  of 
late  years,  grown  far  beyond  the  ratio  of  the  increase  of  our  popula- 
tion, and  have  alarmed  the  considerate  and  reflecting  portion  of  all 
classes  of  the  American  jteople,  is  an  admitted  fact.    That  this  increase 
is  traceable  to   the  immense  influx  of  foreigners  within  the  last  ten 
years  ])ast,  no  one  who  examines  the  subject  can  deny.     Thousands 
have  come  hither  within  that  period  to  fill  our  streets  as  beggars,  or 
to  become  the  inmates  of  our  alms-houses,  and  other  charitabh;  insti- 
tutions.    Undesirable  as  such  a  population  may  be,  we  are  yet  atllicted 
with  one  of  a  still  worse  character,  derived  I'rora  the  same  source. 
Our  country  has  l>een  converted  into  a  sort  of  penal  colony,  to  which 
foreign  governments  ship  their  crinunals.    It  is  not  only  the  thriftless 
poor  who  come  hither,  spending  their  last  cent  in  crossing  the  Atlantic 
to  add  to  the  burden  of  our  poor  laws,  and  to  stand  bt-tween  native 
misfortune  and  the  relief  provided  for  it  by  charity,  but  inmates  of 
the  i»risons  <jf  Europe  arc  sent  hither  by  tjieir  governments  to  prey 
upon  society  and  to  contaminate  our  people  with  their  vices.     Of  the 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 


trutli  of  this,  there  is  ample  proof.  The  evil  complained  of,  and  asked 
to  be  remedied,  exists  in  a  most  fearful  reality ;  ancf  such  powers  as 
are  conferred  upon  the  government  by  the  Constitution  to  protect  and 
guard  the  people  against  it,  should  be  promptly  employed  in  their 
behalf.  Already  the  fountains  of  public  morality  have  been  corrupted 
and  the  public  safety  compromised.  Our  commercial  cities  have  be- 
come filled  with  these  foreign  felons,  deep  dyed  in  crime,  who  them- 
selves constituting  a  powerful  class,  are  not  only  constantly  engaged* 
in  committing  crimes,  but  conspiring  against  the  public  peace.  They 
are  the  stuff  that  mobs  are  made  of  in  those  cities,  who  invade  the 
sanctity  and  purity  of  the  ballot-box,  and  destroy  the  freedom  of  the 
elective  franchise. 

FOREIGNERS  CROWDED  IN  THE  CITIES. 

That  a  large  part  of  the  foreign  born  population  resides  in  the 
cities  and  towns  may  readily  be  perceived  by  examining  the  following 
table,  showing  the  number  of  inhabitants,  native  and  foreign,  of  the 
cities  therein  named  : 


Free  States. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

Slave  States. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

New  York 

277,752         23.T.733 

Baltimore  ,•..•• 

130,491 
50,  470 
36,529 
33,530 
25,079 
17,809 
15,441 
9,565 

35,492 

Philadelphia 

266,246 

88,948 
60.558 

121,699 
46,677 

New  Orleans 

St   Louis 

48.601 

38,397 

4,282 

12,461 

5li  .^il 

Washincrton 

Albany 

31,162              16   ri^l 

31,755 
13,693 
26,561 
11,055 
17,265 
16,641 
7,181 

9.679 
15,682 

4,643 

ChicaiTO 

Richmond ■ .  > 

2,102 

4,086 

]Vpwn rk  ....■*>•••.. 

12,322 
9,927 
3,512 
3,697 

12,782 

Mobile  .....  ....... 

Detroit 

Total 

Portland 

\^p\v  Ma  vpn  .....>«.. 

Total 

868,917 

542,832 

318,914 

150.064 

Aggregate  of  free  States 1,411,749 

Aggregate  of  slave  States 468,978 

Aggregate  population 1,880,727 

Native 1,187;831 

Foreign 692 ,  896 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  almost  one-third  of  the  entire  foreign  pop- 
ulation in  the  country  reside  in  the  twenty  cities  named  in  the  fore- 
going table,  while  they  contain  but  about  the  fifteenth  part  of  the 
native  i^opulation  of  the  United  States.  It  will  be  seen,  also,  that  of 
the  foreign  population  of  the  New  England  States,  there  were  in  the 
cities  of  I3oston,  Providence,  Portland,  and  New  Haven,  no  less  than 
63,555,  being  over  20  per  cent,  of  the  whole  number  in  these  States. 
In  the  cities  of  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Newark,  and  Albany,  there 
were  386,345,  being  38  per  cent,  of  the  foreign  population  of  the 
three  middle  States  of  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  and  New  Jersey.  In 
Cincinnati,  Chicago,  Detroit,  and  Milwaukie,  there  were  92,932, 
being  17  per  cent,  of  their  number  in  the  western  and  northwestern 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  3 

States,  comprising  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  and 
Iowa.  In  the  cities  of  St.  Louis  and  Louisville,  there  were  50,858, 
being  43  per  cent,  of  the  number  in  the  southwestern  States  of  Ken- 
tucky, Missouri,  Tennessee,  Mississippi  and  Arkansas.  In  the  cities 
of  Baltimore,  Richmond,  Charleston,  Mobile  and  New  Orleans,  there 
were  94,924,  being  54  per  cent,  of  those  in  the  south  Atlantic  States 
of  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina, 
Georgia,  Alabama,  Florida  and  Louisiana. 

An  examination  of  the  census  returns  of  1850  will  disclose  these 
facts :  that  near  40  per  cent,  of  the  foreign  population  therein,  the 
State  of  New  York,  resided  in  the  cities  of  New  York  and  Albany ; 
that  over  one-fourth  of  those  in  Massachusetts  were  in  Boston  ;  that 
40  per  cent,  of  those  in  Rhode  Island  were  in  Providence  ;  that  about 
one-sixth  of  those  in  Connecticut,  resided  in  the  cities  of  Hartford  and 
New  Haven  ;  that  the  city  of  Newark  alone  had  one-fifth  of  those  in 
New  Jersey  ;  and  Philadelphia  about  40  per  cent,  of  those  in  Penn  - 
sylvania.  So  in  the  southern  States  ;  Mobile  had  about  GO  per  cent, 
of  the  foreign  population  in  Alabama;  New  Orleans,  over  70  per  cent, 
of  those  in  Louisiana ;  Savannah  37  per  cent,  of  those  in  Georgia ; 
Charleston  considerably  over  one-half  of  those  in  South  Carolina; 
Louisville,  near  40  per  cent,  of  those  in  Kentucky  ;  St.  Louis  over 
one-half  of  those  in  Missouri ;  Nashville  and  Memphis  over  40  per 
cent,  of  those  in  Tennessee  ;  Baltimore  about  67  per  cent,  of  those  in 
Maryland;  and  Wilmington  about  one-third  of  those  in  Delaware. 
And  the  same  may  be  said  of  the  western  States.  Of  those  in  Ohio, 
over  one-fourth  were  in  Cincinnati,  and  of  those  in  Illinois  over  one- 
eighth  were  in  Chicago ;  of  those  in  Michigan  about  one-sixth  in 
Detroit,  and  of  those  in  Wisconsin,  over  one-ninth  in  Milwaukie. 

These  facts  clearly  show  that  a  very  large  portion  of  the  immigrant 
23opulation  is  in  the  cities  and  towns,  and  though  we  are  without  sta- 
tistics on  the  subject,  we  may  fairly  draw  the  inference  that  the  major 
part  of  the  worthless  portion  of  it  may  be  found  in  the  cities  and  towns. 
It  isthere  where  the  outcasts,  mendicants,  and  convicts,  disgorged  from 
the  jails  and  workhouses  of  Europe,  are  mostly  exercising  their  cor- 
rupting influence  upon  public  morals,  and  oppressing  the  honest  and 
virtuous  citizen  with  heavy  taxation.  Need  it  then  be  wondered  at 
that  both  national  and  State  interference  are  now  demanded  ?  The 
evil  has  become  oppressive,  and  hence  it  is  that  sentiments  like  the 
following,  taken  from  the  last  annual  report  of  the  governors  of  the 
New  York  city  alms-houses,  are  now  uttered  in  official  documents  in 
all  parts  of  the  country. 

"  There  are  points  of  expenditure  which  are  forced  upon  the  depart- 
ment that  ought  to  be  obviated.  Every  effort  is  being  made  to  pre- 
vent it  in  future,  and  obtain  redress  for  the  past. 

"  The  board  need  not  remind  you  that  they  refer  to  the  unjust  im- 
position upon  the  citizens  of  New  York,  by  the  large  number  of  vag- 
rants, prisoners,  and  lunatics,  as  well  as  the  out-door  poor,  who  are 
thrown  upon  them  through  the  inability  of  the  commissioner  of  emi- 
gration to  support  those  avIio  are  thrown  upon  the  public  charity 
during  the  first  five  years  of  their  residence  here.  The  sum  already 
expended,  $60,000,  without  including  any  previous  time  when  no  ac- 


4  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

count  was  rendered.  This  evil  still  exists,  and  unless  some  action 
is  liad  to  remedy  it,  the  burden  will  reach  far  beyond  the  present 
claims  made  for  their  support. 

"There  is  no  good  reason  why  the  city  should  not  be  protected 
against  this  unjust  use  of  its  charities,  by  national  or  State  interference 
in  its  behalf,  or  an  increase  of  the  fund  of  the  commissioners  of  emi- 
gration, by  an  addition  to  the  present  passenger  tax." 

INCREASE  OF  INTEMPERANCE,  AND  ITS  CAUSE. 

Intemperance  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  great  causes  of  pauperism 
and  crime.     The  progress  of  intemperance  can,  to  a  very  great  extent, 
be  traced  to  the  immense  influx  of  foreigners  of  these  classes.     Espe- 
cially true  is  this  in  regard  to  all  our  commercial  cities.     As  already 
shown,  they  love  the  haunts  of  cities,  and  do  not  spread  themselves 
over  the  country  and  cultivate  our  soil.     Coming  generally  without 
means,  trades  or  professions,  they  are  compelled  to  remain  at  the  port 
at  which  they  land  upon  our  shore,  and  seek  refuge  in  our  public  in- 
stitutions for  the  poor,  or  engage  in  some  business  requiring  little  or 
no  capital.     The  first  step  of  hundreds  and  thousands  of  them  conse- 
quently is,  to  open  a  grog  shop,  and  thus  aid  to  promote  vice.     The 
natural  result  is,  that  irreligion,  immorality,  pauperism  and  crime 
radiate  from  the  cities,  and  spread  over  the  land  their  demoralizing 
influence.     These  are  not  mere  assertions.     A  superabundance  of  facts 
may  be  adduced  to  substantiate  its  truth.     Those  engaged  in  keeping 
grog  shops  are  generally  of  these  classes,  and  though  we  are  without 
accura'e  statistical  information  on  the  subject,  there  is  enough  of  an 
entirely  reliable  character  to  put  at  rest  all  doubts. 

The  inspectors  of  the  Moyamensing  prison  at  Philadelphia,  in  their 
report  of  1854,  bear  the  following  emphatic  testimony  on  this  point: 
Full  three-fourths  of  all  the  crimes  that  are  committed  may  l)e  traced 
to  intemperance.     The  rum  shops  that  infest  our  city  furnish  a  large 
proportion  of  our  prisoners.     It  is  not  of  unfrequent  occurrence,  that 
prisoners  of  the  class  alluded  to  are  but  a  few  hours  released  from 
confinement  when  they  are  brought  back  upon  a  similar  charge.    The 
turnkey's  report  for  1853,  furnished  by  the  mayor's  clerk  to  the  grand 
jury  ot   the  March  term  of  the  Philadelphia  quarter  sessions,  shows 
that  of  9,112  prisoners,  7,852  were  for  intoxication  or  crimes  induced 
by  the  use  of  strong  drink.     According  to  a  statement  of  Mayor  Con- 
rad of  Philidelphia.  in  a  message  to  the  councils,  there  were  38,657 
arrests  made  by  the  police  during  tlie  year  1855,  of  which  number 
11,234  were  for  intemperance,  and  18,344  for  breaches  of  the  peace, 
making  an  aggregate  of  near  30,000.     Of  these  arrests,  there  were 
about  26,000  foreigners. 

In  further  corroboration  of  the  assertion  that  intemperance  is  one 
of  the  great  causes  of  the  rapid  progress  of  vice  and  immorality,  and 
that  the  large  accession  of  a  vicious  foreign  population  in  our  country 
contributes  largely  to  the  increase  of  intemperance,  the  following  facts 
may  be  adduced  :  Mr.  Headly,  secretary  of  state,  in  a  report  to  the 
New  York  legislature,  states  that  intemperance  was  the  cause  of  pau- 
perism in  that  State,  during  the  last  year,  in  no  less  than  from  25,000 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  5 

to  30,000  instances,  of  which  the  number  of  those  of  foreign  birth  is 
not  given,  but  there  is  no  doubt,  judging  from  the  other  features  of  the 
report,  tliat  a  large  majority  was  of  that  class.  The  resident  physician 
of  Blackwell's  Island,  in  his  report  for  1855,  to  the  governors  of  the 
New  York  city  alms-house,  shows  that  88 it,  per  cent,  of  all  admitted 
could  be  classed  under  the  heads  of  intemperance,  or  habitual  drunk- 
ards, and  that  TOi'-q  i)er  cent,  were  of  foreign  birth.  The  report  of  the 
warden  of  the  New  York  city  prison,  for  1855,  shows  that  of  36,264 
prisoners  admitted,  32,703  were  intemperate_,  and  that  of  the  number 
admitted,  27,338  were  foreigners.  Of  301  arrested  in  New  York  city 
for  drunkenness,  during  the  first  week  of  August,  1855,  there  were 
252  foreigners,  211  of  whom  were  from  Ireland,  16  from  Scotland,  12 
from  England,  7  from  Germany,  3  from  France,  and  3  from  Wales  ; 
of  314  arrested  for  the  same  offence  the  week  following,  286  were 
foreigners,  218  of  whom  were  Irish,  17  German^  14  English,  and  14 
Scotch . 

These  statistics  cannot  be  carefully  examined  without  leading  us 
irresistibly  to  the  conclusion,  that  there  is  a  close  and  intimate  con- 
nexion between  the  large  influx  of  a  bad  foreign  immigration,  and  the 
increase  of  intemperance,  and  all  its  concomitant  evils.     We  have 
materially  changed  as  a  people,  since  the  first  half  century  succeeding 
our  independence  as  a  nation  ;  and  a  careful  inquiry  must  satisfy  every 
unbiased  mind,  that  the  change  has  not  been  for  the  better.     During 
the  last  decade,  this  influx,  and  the  evils  consequent  thereon,  have 
everywhere  become  visible,  and  not  only  destroyed  the  landmarks  of 
those  primitive  virtues  which  characterized  us  as  a  people  and  a  nation 
anterior  thereto,  but  the  gradual  increase  of  the  vice  of  intemperance, 
and  its  hand-maids,  crime  and  pauperism,  and  juvenile  vagrancy  and 
viciousness,  can  be  traced  clearly  and  unmistakeably  to  the  same  cause. 
Let  any  one  examine  the  statistics  on  the  subject,  and  he  will  find, 
without  difliculty,  the  source  from  whence  comes  this  rapid  increase 
of  vice,  which,  of  late  years,  has  grown  so  enormously^  that  it  is  now 
alike  alarming  to  our  morals,  and  the  stability  of  our  institutions. 
This  increase,  so  fraught  with  evil  consequences,  has  not  been  among 
those  of  native  birth,  or  who  have  resided  long  in  the  country.     It 
has  been  caused  by  those  coming  hither  within  the  last  ten  years 
past,  thousands  of  whom  were  the  inmates  of  poor-houses  and  prisons 
in  Europe.     Is  it  not,  then,  a  great  moral  and  political  evil,  the  mag- 
nitude and  consequences  of  which  demand  an   immediate  remedy? 
Look  at  it.     The  census  returns  from  1830  to  1850,  show  the  increase 
of  our  i^opulation  to  be  sixty-one  per  cent. ,  ivliile  the  increase  of  pau- 
perism has  been  seven  hundred  and  six  per  cent.     In  1831,  there  was 
one  pauper  to  every  123  persons.     It  is  difficult  to  say  what  it  is  now, 
but  in  New  York  State,  it  has  been  ascertained  to  be  this  year  one  to 
every  seventeen!     The  increase  in  that  State,  in  1855,  over  the  pre- 
ceding year,  was  70,000  persons,  at  an  additional  expense  of  over  a 
million  of  dollars.    Where  could  this  increase  come  from?    The  reports 
of  the  various  public  institutions  show  that  it  comes  from  foreign 
lands.     The  same  ratio  continued  twenty  or  thirty  years  longer  will 
make  us  a  nation  of  paupers  and  criminals.     The  public  morals,  the 
peace  and  prosperity  of  the  country,  the  very  existence  of  our  institu- 


b  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

tions,  all  are  imperilled  thereby,  and  unite  in  invokins;  prompt  and 
effective  legislation  to  guard  and  protect  us  against  it. 

FOREIGN  PAUPERISM. 

Tlie  census  returns  of  1850  show  that  the  amount  of  public  means 
expended  during  the  preceding  year,  for  the  support  of  paupers,  is 
|2, 954, 806,  and  the  number, of  paupers  supported  during  the  same 
period,  in  whole  or  part,  was  134,972.  They  show  further  that,  of 
the  number  thus  supported,  there  were  68,538  of  foreign  birth,  heing 
over  one  half  of  the  whole  number.  Those  of  foreign  birth  then  in  the 
country  numbered  2,244,625,  and  one  out  of  every  thirty-three  of  that 
number  was,  therefore,  a  pauper  ;  while  the  native  born,  including 
the  free  colored,  and  those  whose  birth  was  unknown,  numbered 
19,979,563,  of  whom  only  one  out  of  every  three  hundred  was  a  charge 
on  the  publie.  The  following  table  exhibits  the  number  of  foreign 
and  native  paupers,  during  the  year  preceding  1850,  and  the  amount 
of  means  expended  in  each  State  : 


States. 


Native.      j      Foreign. 


Maine 

New  Hampsliire 

Vermont 

Massachusetts  . . 
Rhode  Island  , . . 
Connecticut  . . . . 

New  Vork 

New  Jersey 

Pennsylvania  . . . 

Delaware 

Maryland 

Virginia 

North  Carolina . . 
South  Carolina. . 

Georgia 

Florida 

Alabama 

Mississippi 

Louisiana 

Texas 

Arkansas  

Tennessee 

Kentucky 

Ohio 

Michigan 

Indiana 

Illinois 

Missouri 

Iowa 

Wisconsin 


4,553 

2,853 

2,043 

6,530 

1,115 

1,872 

19,285 

1,816 

5,898 

569 

2,591 

4.933 

1,913 

1,313 

978 

64 

352 

248 

133 

7 

97 

994 

971 

1,904 

649 

860 

386 

1,248 

100 

169 


950 

747 

1,611 

9,247 

1,445 

465 

40,580 

576 

5,653 

128 

1,903 

185 

18 

329 

58 

12 

11 

12 

290 


8 

11 

155 

609 

541 

322 

411 

1,729 

35 

497 


Total.       I  Expenditure. 


5,503 

3,600 

3,654 

15,777 

2,560 

2,337 

59,855 

2,. 392 

11,551 

697 

4,494 

5,118 

1,931 

1,642 

i;036 

76 

363 

260 

423 

7 

105 

1,005 

1,126 

2,513 

1,190 

1,182 

797 

2,977 

135 

666 


$26,600 

33,577 

52,098 

229,759 

25,865 

23,906 

553,918 

22,407 

113.060 

3,274 

30,. 333 

5,513 

559 

8,752 

1,567 

147 

531 

836 

27,318 


331 
337 

8,431 
25,578 
12,329 
25,597 
23.217 
30,963 

1,786 
10.998 


Aggregate 66,434 


68,538 


134,972 


2,954,806 


The  same  census  returns,  from  Avhich  the  foregoing  facts  are  col- 
lected, show  the  following  condition  of  things  in  the  poor-houses,  in 
the  States  named,  on  the  first  of  June,  1850:  Massachusetts  had  at 
that  time  3,712  persons  in  the  poor-houses,  not  including  the  out-of- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  7 

door  paupers,  who  received  public  aid,  of  which  number  there  were 
989  foreigners,  heing  over  one-third  of  the  ivhole  number,  of  whom  803 
were  from  Ij^'^^nd,  13  from  Germany,  and  173  from  other  countries. 
Maryhand  had  988,  of  which  number  243  were  of  foreign  birth,  being 
near  one-fourth,  of  whom  128  were  from  Ireland,  88  from  G-ermany, 
and  27  from  other  countries.  Missouri  had  276,  of  which  number  151 
were  foreign  born,  being  over  one-half,  of  whom  77  from  Ireland,  43 
from  Germany,  and  31  from  other  countries.  A  like  disproportion  of 
those  of  foreign  birth  existed  in  the  other  States,  except  in  Virginia, 
North  Carolina,  and  one  or  two  other  southern  States. 

Other  statistics,  of  more  recent  date,  but  no  less  reliable,  prove  that 
this  disproportion  of  the  foreign  born,  on  the  public  charge,  still  con- 
tinues to  exist,  and  is  on  the  increase.  The  following  facts,  collated 
and  derived  from  various  authentic  sources,  presents,  if  possible,  a 
still  more  startling  picture  of  the  evils  of  foreign  pauperism  than  do 
the  census  returns  of  1850,  startling  as  they  must  be  to  everyone  who 
has  not  hitherto  had  his  attention  turned  to  the  subject.  Mr.  Whit- 
ney, in  his  admirable  work,  entitled  "A  Defence  of  the  American 
Policy,"  states  that  the  authorities  of  New  York  provide  and  support 
annually,  for  a  population  of  diseased  and  destitute  foreigners,  the 
very  refuse  of  Europe,  to  an  extent  equal  to  the  entire  population  of 
any  one  county  in  the  State,  excepting  the  four  or  five  largest,  and 
far  greater  than  many  of  the  most  thriving  counties  ;  also,  that  ac- 
cording to  the  census  returns  of  1850,  there  were  then  ten  counties  in 
the  State  whose  entire  population,  severally,  was  less  than  the  number 
of  foreign  paupers  entirely  and  permanently  supported  in  the  hospi- 
tals and  asylums  of  the  commissioners  of  emigration,  during  the  year 
1852  !  According  to  their  report  for  that  year,  the  number  of  immi- 
grants arrived  at  New  York  was  300,992,  and  the  number  supported 
or  pecuniarily  assisted  by  the  commission  was  141,992  !  The  reports 
of  the  commissioners  for  the  years  1852,  '53,  '54,  exhibit  the  follow- 


mg  statistics : 

Marine  Hospital        -        -        - 

Eefuge  and  Hospital  on  Ward's 

Island        -         -        -        - 

Lunatic  Asylum        .        -        - 

1852. 

8,887 

15,182 
355 

1853. 

4,796 

14,365 
362 

1854. 

4,762 

15,950 
260 

Aggregate. 

18,445 

45,197 
977 

Total  -        -        -      24,424     19,523     20,972       64,919 

Boarded   and    lodged  tempora- 
rily in  the  city  -        -        -     117,568     44,514     44,514     206,796 


Total  cared  for  -     141,992     64,037     65,486     271,715 

According  to  a  report  made  to  the  New  York  legislature,  by 
Mr.  Hadley,  secretary  of  state^  the  amount  expended  for  the  support 
and  relief  of  the  poor  in  that  State,  during  the  year  1855,  was 
^1,379,950  50,  and  the  number  supported  or  relieved  was  as  follows: 
county  paupers,  84,934  ;  town  paupers,  18,412  ;  total  received  and 
supported,  204,161  ;  temporarily  relieved,  159,092.  T||,nativity  of 
paupers  is  given  as  follows:  natives,  80,324;  foreign  bOTa,  119,607; 


8  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

and  of  those  relieved  there  were  94,127  of  foreign  birth.  There  re- 
mained in  the  poor-honses  at  the  end  of  the  year  11/J97  paupers,  of 
whom  5, 7 73  were  foreigners,  being  almost  one-half.        •• 

The  seventh  annual  report  of  the  governors  of  the  alms-houses, 
New  York  city,  for  the  year  1855,  exhibits  a  similar  state  of  facts. 
The  warden  of  the  Belleview  hospital,  in  his  report  to  the  governors, 
slates  the  number  of  admissions  during  the  year  to  have  been  5,755, 
of  which  number  but  856  were  natives,  and  4,899  were  foreigners,, 
heing  over  eighty  per  cent,  of  the  luhole  numher ;  of  whom  4,242  were 
from  Ireland,  281  from  Germany,  201  from  England,  69  from  Scot- 
land, 23  from  Canada,  16  from  France,  61  from  other  countries,  and 
6  unknown.     The  warden  of  the  alms-house,  Blackwell's  Island,  re- 
ports the  whole  number  of  admitted,  from  1st  of  January  to  31st  of 
December,  1855,  inclusive,  was  3,096,  of  which  number  773  were  na- 
tives, and  2,323  were  foreigners,  heing  three-fourths  of  the  ivhole  number 
admitted;  of  whom  1,949  were  from  Ireland,  148  from  Germany,  121 
from  England,  38  from  Scotland,  and  67  from  other  countries.     The 
report  of  the  resident  physician  of  the  city  Lunatic  Asylum,  states 
the  admissions,  during  the  year,  to  have  been  371,  of  which  number 
78  were  natives  and  293  foreigners,  heing  over  tivo-thirds  of  the  lohole 
number  ;  of  whom  178  were  from  Ireland,  63  from  Germany,  19  from 
England,  and  the  remainder  from  other  countries.     Of  418  children 
admitted  into  the  New  York  House  of  Refuge,  during  the  year  1855, 
four-fifths  are  reported  to  have  been  of  foreign  parentage,  and  of  these 
two-thirds  were  Irish.     According  to  the  New  York  newspapers,  the 
number  of  patients  to  whom  medical  services  and  medicines  were  fur- 
nished gratuitously,  by  the  various  dispensaries  in  that  city,  during 
the  month  of  March,  1856,  were  7,928,  of  which  number  3,414  were 
males,  and  4,514  females,  2,925  Americans  and  5,085  foreigners,  al- 
most two-thirds  of  the  whole  numher  heing  foreigners.     The  number  of 
patients  attended  during  July,  1855,  at  the  northern  dispensary  in 
New  York  city,  was  996,  of  whom  &^^  icere  foreigners ,  568  being  Irish, 
24  English,  15  Scotch,  12  German,  and  11  from  other  countries.     So 
of  1,945  patients  at  the  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary  of  the  same  city,  dur- 
ing the  year  1848,  there  were  1,118  foreigners. 

In  Massachusetts  there  were  relieved  and  maintained  at  the  public 
expense,  from  1837  to  1840,  the  aggregate  number  of  8,671  persons, 
of  whom  6,104  were  foreigners,  heing  over  tiDO-tliirds  of  the  numher. 
For  the  years  1850,  '51,  '52,  and  '53,  ending  November  1,  the  whole 
number  amounted  to  107,776,  of  which  48,469  were  foreigners^  being 
not  quite  one  half,  and  of  these  over  40,000  were  from  England  and 
Ireland. 

A  report  made  to  tlie  Massachusetts  legislature,  by  a  commission 
on  insanity  and  lunacy  in  that  State,  discloses  these  facts :  That  in  a 
population  estimated  at  1,124,676  there  are  2,632  lunatics,  and  1,087 
idiots;  that  of  the  2,632  lunatics  there  were  625  foreigners^  and  of  the 
1,043  idiots,  there  were  only  66  foreigners;  that  of  the  2,632  lunatics, 
1,522  were  paupers,  and  1,110  were  supported  by  their  own  property 
or  friends;  and  that  of  the  1,522  paupers,  693  were  paupers  of  the 
State,  ha-^up  no  legal  settlement  in  the  State.  The  report  reveals 
further  thi^triking  disproportion  in  the  number  and  condition  of 


# 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


native  and  foreign  lunatics.  Of  tlie  lunatics  not  dependent  on  charity, 
1,066  are  natives,  and  only  44  foreigners,  while  of  the  pauper  lunatics, 
581  are  foreigners  and  941  natives.  Of  the  2,007  native  lunatics, 
1,227  are  maintained  by  friends,  and  780  in  hospitals,  (fee,  while  of 
625  foreign  lunatics,  568  are  in  hospitals,  &c.,  and  only  57  maintained 
by  friends ;  so  that  ninety -three  jyer  cent,  of  foreign  lunatics  in  Mas- 
sachusetts are  pauijers. 

The  following  is  the  aggregate  of  the  monthly  census  taken  of  the 
inmates  of  the  Blockley  alms-house  in  Philadelphia,  during  the  year 
1855 :  Number  of  inmates  25,262,  of  which  number  6,319  were  Ameri- 
cans, 1^578  negroes,  and  17,345  foreigners,  heing  ahout  sixty-eight 2Jer 
cent,  of  the  iclwle  number  of  foreigners.  The  society  for  the  relief  of  the 
poor,  in  Philadelphia,  report  that  for  the  year  ending  March  31, 1855, 
there  were  received  into  their  establishment  1,266  persons,  of  whom 
there  were  816  foreigners,  182  of  unknown  birth  and  268  Americans  ; 
of  the  foreigners  there  were  605  Irish,  122  English^  41  German,  32 
Scotch,  7  French^  3  Welsh,  2  Italian,  2  West  Indian,  1  from  Switzer- 
land, and  1  from  St.  Helena. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  hospital  for  the  insane,  of  2,576  patients  ad- 
mitted, 635,  being  one-fourth  of  the  number,  were  foreigners,  of  whom 
346  were  Irish,  118  English,  108  German,  and  the  remainder  from 
other  countries.  The  following  is  a  table  of  the  admissions  into  the 
Pennsylvania  Hospital,  at  Philadelphia,  for  a  period  of  twelve  years 
last  past,  showing  the  nativities  of  the  persons  received. 


Years. 


Other  countries. 


1842. 
1843. 
1844. 
1845. 
1846. 
1847. 
1848. 
1849. 
1850. 
1851. 
1852. 
1853. 
1854. 

Total 


It  thus  appears  that  the  aggregate  number  received  was  17,834  in 
these  twelve  years,  of  which  10,543  were  foreigners,  being  consider- 
ably over  one-half  of  the  whole  number,  and  of  which  more  than  tiuo- 
thirds  loere  from  Ireland.  Of  those  admitted  during  the  year  1854, 
there  were,  as  above  stated,  579  natives,  902  Irish,  350  from  other 
countries^  of  whom  132  were  German,  100  English,  38  Scotch,  13 
French,  9  Welsh,  8  Swiss,  6  West  Indians^  4  Danes,  3  from  Italy 
and  East  Indies,  each,  2  from  Newfoundland,  Belgium,  and  at  sea, 
each;  and  1  from  Hungary,  Norway,  Finland,  Greece,  Brazil,  and 
Canada,  each. 


10  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


wJ^ 


The  number  received  into  the  Baltimore  alms-house,  during  the 
year  1851,  was  2_,150,  of  which  number  about  900  were  Irish  and  6^er- 
mans ;  and  of  2,358  admitted  to  the  same  institution  in  1854,  there 
icere  l,o9l  forcigneos,  of  whom  641  were  German  and  593  Irish.  Ac- 
cording to  the  report  of  the  board  of  trustees,  for  the  j^ear  1855,  the 
number  of  inmates  during  the  year  was  2,411,  of  which  number  996 
were  natives,  and  1,415  were  foreigners,  iemj;  a  fraction  less  than  fifty- 
nine  i^er  cent,  of  the  whole  numher  foreigners ,  of  whom  646  were  from 
Germany,  568  from  Ireland,  78  from  England,  32  from  Scotland,  and 
21  from  France. 

The  report  for  the  Erie  county  prison.  New  York,  located  at  Buftalo, 
shows  that  of  1,564  prisoners  received  during  the  year  1855,  only  432 
were  Americans,  and  1,083  foreigners,  being  more  than  tivo-thirds  of 
the  lohole  number  of  the  latter  class.  A  Buffalo  paper  gives  the  follow- 
ing statement  of  the  number  committed  to  the  work-house  in  that  city 
for  the  last  four  years  past : 


Years. 

1852 
1853 
1854 
1855  (11  months)    - 

Native. 

254 
318 
344 

360 

Foreign. 

708 

832 

854 

1,022 

Total. 

962 
1,150 
1,198 
1,362 

Total  four  years 

1,276 

3,416 

4,692 

At  the  New  Orleans  city  work-house,  the  number  committed  dur- 
ing the  two  weeks  ending  August  3,  1855,  was  108,  of  which  92  ivere 
foreigners,  of  whom  60  were  Irish.  At  the  charity  hospital  in  the 
same  city,  the  number  of  admissions  in  1848,  was  11,945,  of  whom 
but  1,579  belonged  to  the  United  States,  and  10,280  were  foreigners. 
In  1849,  there  were  15,558  persons  admitted,  of  whom  only  1,782 
belonged  to  the  United  States^  and  13^634  loere  foreigners.  In  the 
year  1853,  there  were  13,750  persons  admitted,  of  whom  12,333  were 
foreigners,  and  1,534  natives. 

So  in  Cincinnati,  there  were  during  the  year  1848,  about  3,000 
persons  admitted  into  the  city  hospital,  of  whom  over  tivo-thirds  luere 
foreigner's;  during  the  year  1854,  the  number  admitted  was  520,  of 
whom  449  2oere  foreigners ;  the  number  who  received  in-door  relief 
was  1,599,  of  whom  1,307  tvere  foreigners ;  and  the  total  number  of 
persons  relieved  at  the  institution  during  the  same  period,  was  6,280, 
of  whom  4,654  were  foreigners.  So  at  the  Infirmary  in  the  same 
city,  the  number  admitted  in  1854,  was  660,  of  whom  505  were  for- 
eigners. 

These  are  stubborn,  undeniable  facts,  showing  that  a  great  and 
rapidly  increasing  public  evil  exists  in  our  commercial  cities,  which 
demands  a  prompt  and  efficient  remedy.  Nor  is  the  evil  confined  to 
the  cities  and  large  towns.  It  exists  in  the  rural  districts,  and 
throughout  the  whole  country.  Of  this  we  have  ample  evidence  in 
the  following  statements  from  papers  published  at  Chambersburg, 
Pennsylvania:  That  at  Gettysburg  states  ''that  the  register  of  the 
Adams  county  alms-house,  Pennsylvania,  shows  that  the  number  of 
vagrant  paupers  relieved  during  the  year  1855,  was  545,   of  which 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


11 


number  but  45  were  Americans  and  449  foreigners,  of  whom  397  were 
from  Germany,  79  from  Ireland,  and  the  remainder  from  other  coun- 
tries. The  number  of  day's  relief  for  Americans  was  only  148,  and 
for  foreigners  2,777,  of  that  at  Chambersburg,  states  that  for  a  period 
of  nine  months  from  January  1st,  1855,  there  were  553  wayfaring 
paupers  entertained  at  the  poor-honse  of  Franklin  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, of  Avhom  522  Avere  foreigners,  and  but  31  Americans." 

FOREIGx\   CRIMINALS. 

The  census  of  1850  shows  that  the  whole  number  of  criminals  within 
the  year  preceeding,  in  all  the  States,  except  California,  was  26,679; 
of  which  number  12,988  were  natives,  and  13,691  foreigners,  being 
one  conxiciion  out  oi  Qverj  ffteen  hundred  and  eiglitii  of  the  natives, 
and  one  out  of  every  one  hundred  and  sixty-Jive  of  the  foreign  popula- 
tion of  the  United  States  at  that  time.  The  proportion  of  native  and 
foreign  crime,  it  thus  appears,  was  as  one  to  ten — one  American 
to  ten  foreigners.  The  following  table  exhibits  the  number  of  con- 
victions in  each  State  during  the  preceding  year : 


States  and  Territories. 


Alabama 

Arkansas 

California 

Columbia  "  District". 

Connecticut 

Delaware 

Florida 

Georgia 

Illinois 

Indiana 

Jowa 


Kentucky  

Louisiana 

Maine 

Maryland 

Massachusetts  . . , 

Michigan 

Mississippi 

Missouri 

New  Hampshire 

New  Jersey 

New  York 

North  Carolina  . 
Ohio 


Pennsylvania  . . 
Rhode  Island. . , 
South  Carolina , 

Tennessee 

Texas  

Vermont 

Virginia 

Wisconsin  . . . . 
Minnesota  . . . . 
New  Mexico  .  • 

Oregon  

Utah 

Total 


Natives.     '  Foreigners. 


117 

24 

1 


545 

22 

33 

72 

129 

150 

2 

126 

197 

284 

183 

3.366 

293 

49 

242 

66 

346 

3,962 

634 

689 

564 

309 

32 

73 

15 

34 

98 

105 

1 

104 

5 

6 


305 


189 

25 

1 

34 

100 

460 

24 

3,884 

386 

2 

666 

24 

257 

6.317 

13 

154 

293 

287 

14 

8 

4 

45 

9 

162 

1 

4 


Total. 


122 

25 

1 

132 

850 

22 

39 

80 

316 

175 

3 

160 

297 

744 

207 

7,250 

659 

51 

908 

90 

603 

10,279 

647 

843 

857 

596 

46 

81 

19 

79 

•    107 

267 

0 

108 
5 
9 


12 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 


The  statistics  of  State  prisons  and  penitentiaries  of  1850  show  that 
there  were  then  4,758  white  inmates,  of  whom  1,499  were  of  foreign 
birth,  heing  near  one-third  of  the  luhole  number.  The  proportion  of 
native  and  foreign  inmates  was  therefore  one  native  white  out  of 
ahoiit  every  six  thousand,  and  one  foreigner  out  of  every  1,400. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  whites  imprisoned  in  each 
State : 


States,  &c. 


Alabama 

Arkansas 

Columbia  District. 

Connecticut 

Delaware 

Florida 

Georgia 

Illinois 

Indiana 

Iowa 

Kentucky 

Louisiana 

Maine 

Maryland 

Massachusetts  .. . . 

Michigan 

Mississippi 

Missouri 

New  Hampshire  . . 

New  York 

New  Jersey 

North  Carolina  . . . 

Ohio 

Penns3-lvania    ..., 

Rhode  Island 

South  Carolina  . . , 

Tennessee 

Texas 

Virginia , 

Vermont , 

Wisconsin , 


Total.     I    Native,    i  Foreign. 


117 

21 

96 

37 
27 

37 
17 

10. 

146 

117 

29 

1 
12 
89 

1 
12 

85 

4 

127 

85 

42 

131 

106 

25 

0 

147 

2 
126 

21 

195 

89 

106 

79 

62 

17 

115 

81 

34 

389 

264 

125 

111 

73 

.   38 

85 

80 

5 

165 

107 

58 

91 

77 

14 

1,380 

835 

514 

123 

86 

39 

12 

12 

•  ••••••••• 

362 

291 

71 

328 

205 

123 

35 

21 

14 

32 

19 

13 

189 

180 

9 

5 

2 

3 

130 

119 

11 

69 

39 

30 

29 

8 

19 

Total 


Such  were  the  relative  proportions  of  the  crimes  committed  by  per- 
sons of  native  and  foreign  birth,  when  the  census  of  1850  was  taken. 
More  recent  statistics,  obtained  from  the  reports  of  prison  inspectors, 
prison  discipline  societies,  &c.,  show  that  the  relative  proportion  of 
crimes  by  persons  of  foreign  birth  is  largely  on  the  increase.  Accord- 
ing to  these,  of  the  number  of  persons  during  the  year  1856,  one-fifth 
or  5,646  Avere  sufficiently  grave  to  incur  a  penitentiary  punishment, 
while  the  remaining  20,899  were  punished  with  ordinary  jail  and 
house  of  refuge  incarceration.  The  following;  will  show  the  relative 
proportion  of  the  whole  number  of  cases  in  four  of  the  northern 
States,  which  constitute  two-thirds  of  the  aggregate  in  all  the  States: 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


13 


Massachusetts — Native 

''  Foreign 

New    York — Native 


u 


u 


Foreign 


CONVICTIONS. 

3,6GG 
3,884 
3,962 
6,317 


New    Jersey — Native 

"         "  Foreign 

Pennsylvania — Native 


u 


Foreign 


346 
257 
564 

293 


Total  18,989 

10,751  were  foreigners^  being  more  than  one  half  the  ivhole  mimher. 

Of  314  inmates  in  tlie  penitentiaries  of  New  York,  during  the  years 
1852  and  1853,  there  were  322  foreigners,  being  over  one  half  of  the 
whole  number.  In  the  four  cities  of  Buffalo,  Albany,  Brooklyn,  and 
New  York,  the  number  of  convictions  was  3_,733  in  the  year  1852,  of 
which  2,802  were  foreigners,  being  over  two-tliirds  of  the  number.  A 
Buffiilo  journal  recently  published  the  following  statement  of  persons 
committed  to  the  jail  of  Erie  county,  New  York: 

Native.  Foreign.  Total. 

268  336  604 

192  279  471 


1853 

1854 


Total 


460 


61f 


1,075 


Showing  that  a  large  majority  of  the  convicts  were  paupers. 
The  warden  of  the  New  York  cit}^  prison  reports  that  during  the 
year  1855  there  were  36,264  received  into  the  prison;  of  which  num- 
ber 8,926  were  natives^  and  27,338  foreigners,  being  over  tliree-fourtlis 
of  the  ivhole  number.  The  report  of  the  warden  of  Blackwell's  Island 
penitentiary  states  that  during  the  year  1855  there  were  5,197  pris- 
oners received,  of  which  number  1,386  were  natives,  and  3,811  were 
foreigners,  being  almost  two-thirds  of  the  ivhole  number;  of  whom  2,863 
were  from  Ireland,  336  from  Germany,  287  from  England,  120  from 
Scotland,  91  from  Canada.  45  from  France,  15  from  Italy,  10  from 
Wales,  10  from  Spain,  and  the  remainder  from  other  countries.  The 
report  of  the  resident  physician  at  Blackwell's  Island,  for  the  year 
1855,  gives  the  following  statistics  of  the  admission  in  the  peniten- 
tiary hospital  during  the  year;  Number  admitted,  2,158,  of  which 
number  627  were  natives  and  1,531  were  foreigners,  being  over  seventy 
per  cent  of  the  ivhole  number:  of  whom  1,148  were  from  Ireland,  118 
were  from  Germany,  109  from  England,  61  from  Scotland,  35  from 
Canada,  9  from  ^Vales^  and  the  remainder  from  other  countries. 

In  Pennsylvania  there'  were  admitted  into  the  Eastern  Penitentiary, 
from  October,  1829,  to  the  close  of  the  year  1849,  2,421  persons,  of 
whom  460  were  foreigners,  near  one-sixth  of  the  whole  number,  199 
being  Irish;  and  of  the  124  received  in  1854,  there  were  41  foreigners, 
being  one-third  of  the  number. 

The  inspectors  of  tlie  Moyamensing  prison  at  Philadelphia,  report 
that  of  273  sentenced  in  the  year  1853  to  hard  labor,  114  were  for- 
eigners, 68  of  whom  were  Irish.  In  a  message  of  the  Hon.  Robert 
T.  Conrad,  mayor  of  Philadelphia^  to  the  city  councils,  he  presents 
the  following  police  statistics  for  the  year  1855 :  Number  of  arrests 
during  the  year,  38,657,  not  including  those  made  by  ward  officers, 
and  those  made  under  i)rivate  prosecutions,  of  which  number  there 


14  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS. 

were  10^470  Americans,  2,281  negroes,  and  26,906  foreigners,  making 
within  a  fraction  seventy  percent,  of  the  whole  number  foreigners  ;  of 
whom  21,830  were  from  Ireland,  2,452  were  from  Germany^  1,281 
from  England,  121  from  France,  110  from  Italy,  53  from  Spain,  11 
from  Switzerland,  and  the  remainder[from  other  countries.  The  fol- 
lowing statistics,  said  to  be  taken  from  the  hooks  of  the  recorder's 
court  at  that  city  by  the  day  and  night  police,  made  between  certain 
dates  specified,  and  the  nativities  of  those  arrested  :  Number  arrested 
by  the  day  police,  from  July  17,  1855,  to  March  1,  1856^  was  1,366, 
of  which  102  were  Americans,  73  negroes  and  1,191  foreigners,  making 
over  tiuo-thirds  of  the  whole  number  foreigners;  of  whom  801  were 
from  Ireland,  239  from  Germany  and  151  from  other  countries. 
Total  number  of  arrests  made  by  the  night  police  from  April  16, 
1855,  to  March  1,  1856,  was  2,113,  of  which  143  were  Americans,  151 
negroes  and  1,819  foreigners,  making  over  eighty-five  per  cent,  of  the 
arrests  foreigners;  of  whom  1,192  were  from  Ireland,  473  from  Ger- 
many and  154  from  other  countries. 

A  respectable  local  newspaper,  a  few  months  since,  published  the 
following  statistics  of  crime  and  pauperisni  in  Hudson  county,  New 
Jersey,  viz:  21,000  inhabitants,  of  whom  12,000  are  natives,  5,000 
Irish,  and  4,000  other  foreigners;  4,168  persons  confined  in  city  prison 
and  county  jail,  77  natives,  and  4,Qdd  foreigne7's,  of  whom  3,608  were 
Irish,  188  inmates  of  the  alms-house,  none  of  whom  are  natives  ;  all 
being  Irish ;  723  received  aid  from  the  poor  masters,  of  whom  3  were 
natives,  and  720  Irish.  Of  107  committed  to  the  Jersey  City  prison 
during  the  month  of  June,  1855,  but  13  were  natives,,  3  of  whom  were 
colored,  while  the  others  were  foreigners,  71  of  whom  were  Irish,  14 
English,  and  9  German.  According  to  a  report  of  the  marshal  of  the 
same  city,  there  were,  during  the  month  of  September  last,  113  arrests 
for  the  following  offences  :  Drunkenness,  61  ;  breach  of  peace,  26  ; 
assault  and  battery,  14  ;  vagrancy,  1  ;  violation  of  the  Sabbath,  2  ; 
disorderly  house,  1 ;  assaulting  females  in  the  street,  1 ;  larceny,  7 — 
total,  113.  Of  this  number,  82  were  born  in  Ireland,  20  in  the  United 
States,  6  in  Germany,  3  in  England,  1  in  Scotland,  and  1  was  colored. 
The  captain  of  the  watch  reported,  that  during  the  same  month  there 
were  218  lodged  in  the  watch-house,  of  whom  29  were  females,  whose 
nativity  is  not  given,  67  Irish,  60  German,  22  English,  30  Americans^ 
and  10  colored. 

Louisiana  contains  the  large  city  of  New  Orleans,  and  has,  of  course, 
its  State  prison  filled.  At  the  date  of  the  annual  report  of  1854,  there 
were  295  prisoners,  114  of  whom  were  foreigners,  being  over  three- 
eights  of  the  number  ;  55  being  Irishmen,  15  German,  12  French,  6 
English,  3  Mexican,  3  Prussian,  3  Italian^  and  the  remainder  from 
other  countries.  In  the  Wisconsin  penetentiary  there  were  105  re- 
ceived in  1854,  of  whom  72  were  foreigners,  being  over  two-thirds.  In 
Ohio  at  the  end  of  the  year  1854,  387  inmates  in  the  penitentiary  at 
Columbus,  144  of  whom  were  foreigners,  being  near  one  fourth  of  the 
number.  In  New  Jersey,  during  1852  and  1853,  there  were  received 
in  the  State  prison,  at  Trenton,  351  convicts,  113  of  whom  were 
foreigners,  being  nearly  one-third  of  the  number.  Of  483  convicts  re- 
ceived in  the  Massachusetts  State  prison,  in  1852,  there  were  170 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  15 

foreigners,  being  more  than  one-third  of  the  whole  nvmher ;  and  of  27,383 
persons  admitted  into  the  various  jails  of  that  State,  during  the  years 
1850,  1851,  and  1854,  9,367  were  foreigners  leing  also  over  one-third 
of  the  ivhole  nuniber.  There  were  received  into  the  houses  of  correc- 
tion, in  the  same  State,  29,1TG  persons,  during  the  years  1850,  '51, 
'52,  '53,  and  '51,  of  which  number,  11,149  were  of  foreign  birth, 
being  considerably  over  one-third  of  the  number.  Of  1,056  inmates 
of  the  house  of  correction  in  Boston,  in  1852,  there  were  738  for- 
eigners, being  tico-thirds  of  the  number.  And  of  1,617  admitted  into 
the  State  reform  school,  nearly  one-half  icere  foreigners,  or  the  children 
of  foreigners. 

Alarming  as  is  the  proportion  of  offences  committed  by  those  of 
foreign  birth,  it  is  still  more  so  when  we  come  to  inquire  into  the  con- 
victions for  capital  offences.     Though  without  any  very  reliable  or 
satisfactory  data  on  the  subject,  there  is  abundant  reason  to  believe 
that  a  very  large  majority  of  the  murders,  manslaughters,  burglaries, 
and  other  bigh  crimes,  are  committed  by  the  foreign  born.     In  a 
speech  delivered  by  the  Hon.  James  Cooper,  of  Pennsylvania,  in  the 
Senate,  in  February,  1855,  he  stated  that  of  the  convictions  for  capi- 
tal offences,  the  proportion  of  foreign  to  native  born  was  startling, 
and  that  out  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  convictions  which  took  place 
in  about  eighteen  months,  in  seven  States,  viz:  in  New  York,  Penn- 
sylvania, Missouri,  Louisiana,  New  Jersey,  Massachusetts,  and  Mary- 
land, there  were  138  oi  foreigners  to  82  of  natives.     Mr.  Whitney  in 
his  Defence  of  the  American  Policy,  states  that  an  examination  of  the 
record  of  the  New  York  city  prison,  in  December,  1853,  exhibited  the 
fact,  that  within  eleven  months  there  were  twenty-three  persons  fully 
committed  for  trial  on  the  charge  of  murder,  of  whom  eight  were 
Americans  (including  two  negroes)  and  ff teen  foreigners.    During  the 
same  period  there  were  six  committed  for  manslaughter,  of  whom  one 
was  an  American,  and  five  foreigners.     For  assault  with  intent  to  kill, 
there  were  thirty-five  committals,  of  whom  eight  were  Americans, 
(including  five  negroes,)  and  twenty-seven  foreigners.     For  arson  there 
were  four  committals,  all  of  luhom  icere  foreigners.     Here  we  have  an 
appalling  account  of  sixty-nine  commitments,  for  the  highest  crimes 
known  to  our  laws,  and  of  the  whole  number  so  committed,  there  were 
only  ten  white  Americans,  five  of  whom  were  of  foreign  parentage, 
seven  American  negroes,  and  the  remaining  fifty-two  all  foreigners ! 
Many  other  like  facts  might  be  adduced,  but  it  cannot  be  necessary  to 
add  any  more.     Let  the  following  remarks  of  Judge  Edmonds    in 
passing  sentence  on  certain  murderers,  in  the  New  York  city  court  of 
oyer  and  terminer,  at  the  October  term,  1851,  suffice  : 

"Eight  j)ersons  have  been  arraigned  at  this  term  for  murder.  Five 
of  you  have  been  convicted,  and  upon  three  of  you  the  last  punish- 
ment known  to  our  law  is  denounced.  All  of  you  owe  your  crimes  to 
your  indulgence  in  the  ruinous  habit  of  intoxication.  All  of  you  are 
foreigners,  who  have  sought  our  soil  that  you  might  enjoy  the  benefit 
of  our  free  institutions,  and,  in  return  for  the  protection  which  our 
laws  so  freely  offer,  you  violate  them  without  scruple,  and  apparently 
without  remorse,  even  unto  the  shedding  of  blood.  The  preservation 
of  peace  and  good  order  among  us,  and  the  security  of  human  life, 


16  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

admonish  us,  in  a  peculiar  manner,  under  such  circumstances  to  en- 
force the  law  upon  you." 

JUVENILE  VAGRANCY  AND  ITS  CAUSE. 

Juvenile  vagrancy  is  another  evil  now  exhibiting  itself  to  a  very 
alarming  extent  in  all  our  large  towns  and  cities,  and  an  examination 
of  the  records  of  our  juvenile  delinquent  institutions  shows  but  too 
plainly  from  whence  this  painful  increase  comes.  A  few  facts  will 
make  it  apj^areut  to  the  most  doubting  mind,  and  to  the  dullest  com- 
prehension.    Let  us  examine  them. 

It  is  reported  by  the  Massachusetts  Keform  School,  that  of  324  in- 
mates in  1849,  there  were  66  of  foreign  birth,  of  whom  42  were  Irish, 
and  of  the  286  native  born,  no  less  than  96  were  of  Irish  parentage ; 
and  of  278  admitted  into  the  New  York  house  of  refuge,  in  1850,  there 
were  25  foreign  born,  and  163  were  of  Irish  parentage.  During  the 
year  1853,  there  were  received  112  in  the  Rochester  house  of  refuge, 
73  of  whom  were  of  foreign  birth,  and  of  these  40  were  Irish.  Of 
157  admitted  into  the  house  of  refuge,  in  1853,  at  Cincinnati,  107 
were  foreign  born.  Marshal  Tukey,.of  Boston,  made  a  report  to  the 
mayor  of  that  city  in  1849,  respecting  the  number,  character,  social 
circumstances,  etc.,  of  the  street  children,  in  habits  of  vagrancy,  wan- 
dering about  and  contracting  idle  habits,  &c.,  from  which  it  appears 
that  the  whole  number  of  the  class  of  children  designated,  between 
six  and  sixteen  years  of  age,  was  1,066,  which  were  arranged  as  fol- 
lows: of  American  parents  103,  and  of  foreign  parents  963! 

It  has  been  stated  in  the  public  journals,  that  of  16,000  commit- 
ments for  crimes  in  New  York  city,  during  1852,  at  least  one-fourth 
were  minors,  and  that  no  less  ilan  10,000  children  are  daily  suffering 
all  the  evils  of  vagrancy  in  that  city.  In  1849  the  chief  of  the  police 
department  of  that  city  called  attention  to  the  increasing  number  of 
vagrant,  idle,  and  vicious  children  of  both  sexes,  growing  up  in  igno- 
rance and  profligacy,  and  destined  to  a  life  of  misery,  shame,  and 
crime,  the  number  of  whom  were  given  upon  authority  and  with  an 
exactness  which  claims  confidence.  He  stated  that  there  were  then 
2,955  children  of  the  class  described,  known  to  the  police  in  eleven 
patrol  districts,  of  whom  two-thirds  Avere  females  between  eight  and 
sixteen  years  of  age.  "Most  of  the  children,"  as  was  stated  at  the 
time,  were  of  German  or  Irish  parentage,  the  proportion  of  American 
born  being  not  more  than  one  in  five. 

These  facts  present  a  melancholy  picture  of  the  evil  influences  that 
are  operating  upon  a  large  portion  of  the  rising  generation  of  our 
country.  A  volume  of  well  attested  cases  might  be  cited  to  show  the 
inevitable  effects  upon  our  free  institutions  from  such  a  population.  If 
it  were  one  of  the  objects  of  our  government  to  sow  broad-cast  the 
seeds  of  its  own  destruction,  there  could  be  no  better  nor  more  effec- 
tive scheme  devised,  than  to  stultify  itself  on  the  subject,  and  adopt 
no  means  whereby  the  vast  juvenile  vagrant  population,  now  so 
rapidly  on  the  increase,  may  be  rescued  from  its  youthful  career  of 
immorality,  vice  and  crime.  The  sources  of  this  great  moral  evil  may 
be  almost  wholly  traced  to  the  many  vices  of  our  foreign  population, 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  17 

who  afford  no  other  examples  to  their  children  than  habits  of  disorder, 
idleness  and  uncleanliness,  and  degrading  vices  of  all  kinds,  and  who 
exercise  no  parental  authority  Avhatever  over  them.  How  can  it  be 
expected  that  children,  with  no  other  examples  to  emulate,  who  are 
neither  sent  to  school  nor  church,  nor  put  to  work,  will  grow  up  other- 
wise than  as  vicious  idlers,  with  whom  vagrancy  is  a  confirmed  habit, 
and  thieving  a  profession,  long  before  they  arrive  at  the  age  of  man- 
hood ? 

NEGLECT  OF  EDUCATION. 

If  it  be  true,  and  no  rational  mind  will  doubt  it,  as  we  are  told  by 
Washington^  in  his  farewell  address,  that  "in  proportion  as  the  struct- 
ure of  a  government  gives  force  to  public  opinion,  it  is  essential  that 
jiublic  opinion  should  be  enlightened;"'  then  we  have  another  serious 
cause  of  alarm  in  the  deleterious  influences  the  immense  influx  of 
vicious  foreigners  must  exercise  upon  our  free  institution.  Ignorance 
is  the  parent  of  vice ;  and  it  is  a  lamentable  fact,  that  a  large  portion 
of  the  immigrant  population  are  not  only  ignorant  themselves,  and 
wholly  incapable  of  communing  with  either  the  school  book  or  the 
Bible,  but, 'what  is  yet  worse^,  permit  their  offspring  to  grow  up  in  the 
same  ignorance.  Though  our  schools  are  open  to  all,  it  is  neverthe- 
less true  that  thousands  of  the  children  of  this  class  of  our  popula- 
tion do  not  attend  the  schools,  but  grow  up  in  ignorance,  idleness, 
vagrancy  and  vice.  A  brief  examination  of  the  census  statistics  of 
1850  will  make  this  fact  apparent. 

According  to  the  returns  in  Compendium  of  the  Census,  there  were, 
in  1850,  no  less  than  9,516,538  native  whites,  and  1,344,346  foreigners 
in  the  country,  who  were  over  the  age  of  twenty,  of  whom  982,898 
were  not  able  to  read  and  write.  Of  the  number  thus  ignorant,  767,- 
784  were  native  whites,  and  195,114  foreigners.  These  returns  show 
a  decided  difference  between  the  native  whites  and  the  foreign  born. 
One  in  every  twelve  of  the  native  white  population,  over  twenty  years, 
could  not  read  and  write,  while  of  the  foreign,  not  one  out  of  every 
seven  could  do  so.  According  to  the  same  returns,  there  were,  in 
1850,  in  this  country  4,792,576  native  whites,  and  313,681  foreign 
whites,  who  were  between  five  and  fifteen  years  of  age.  Of  the  na- 
tives, 3,915,620  were  at  school,  making  a  per  centage  of  8.81  of 
native  whites  at  school,  while  the  per  centage  of  those  of  foreign  birth 
at  school  was  51.73.  Here  we  have  an  explanation  from  whence  the 
increase  of  juvenile  vagrancy  comes. 

IMPORTATION  OF  FOREIGN  INFIDELITY. 

Another  serious  evil  resulting  from  the  unguarded  admission  of 
vicious  foreigners,  is  the  flood  of  infidelity  which  has  been  brought 
along  with  them,  and  is  now  being  attempted  to  be  popularized  by 
them  in  this  country.  \  large  portion  of  them  are  atheists,  deeply 
imbued  with  feelings  of  hostility  both  to  religion  and  social  order. 
The  social  institutions  of  this  country  are  regarded  by  them  as  so 
many  unjust  restrictions  on  individual  liberty.  Our  laws  for  the 
observance  of  the  sabbath  are  openly  condemned,  and  often  wholly 
H.  Rep.  359 2 


18  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

disregarded  by  these  disciples  of  the  illumincdi,  whose  creed  is  war 
upon  religion  and  civil  institutions.  In  the  cities,  this  class  of  for- 
eigners are  organized  into  associations  for  the  purpose  of  proselyting, 
and  these  take  no  trouble  to  conceal  their  hostility  to  the  institutions 
of  their  adopted  country.  The  determined  opposition  to  all  laws  to 
restrain  drunkenness  and  debauchery,  and  providing  for  the  proper 
observance  of  the  sabbath,  emanates  almost  entirely  from  this  class  of 
men,  who  are  always  foremost  in  mobs  and  riots,  and  almost  univer- 
sally hostile  to  the  exercise  of  civil  authority. 

Ours  is  a  government  which  rests  not  only  on  the  conservative  prin- 
ciples of  constitutional  liberty,  but  on  the  distinct  recognition  of  the 
authority  of  the  living  God.  Our  revolutionary  forefathers  acknow- 
ledged their  dependence  on  Him,  and  did  not  look  with  favor  upon  an 
irreligious  character,  or  regard  him  as  a  safe  and  proper  depository  of 
power.  Now  that  these  foreign  infidels  are  in  our  midst,  and  in  an 
organized  manner  seeking  to  establish  their  anarchial  and  licentious 
doctrines,  let  us  sustain  the  true  character  of  American  freemen,  and 
do  what  we  can  to  the  extent  of  the  constitutional  j)owers  of  govern- 
ment to  prevent  the  importation  of  a  class  who  come  but  to  prey  upon 
society,  and  who,  not  recognizing  that  the  Lord  ruleth  in  the  affairs 
of  men,  are  fit  material  to  add  to  our  pauperism  and  crime.  On  this 
subject,  Mr.  Sanderson,  in  a  work  recently  published,  containing  an 
elaborate  and  able  exposition  of  the  views  of  American  statesmen,  en- 
titled, Bepuhlican  Landmark,  very  forcibly  comments  as  follows  : 

"■  Exposed  to  every  disease  or  contagion,  moral  and  physical^  which 
originates  in  a  foreign  atmosphere,  and  filled  with  foreigners,  who 
have  no  sympathy  for  the  conservative  elements  in  our  Constitution, 
cherish  no  American  feeling,  entertain  no  attachment  to  our  country, 
its  history  and  institutions  ;  and  instead  of  admiring  the  purer  days 
of  our  national  existence,  venerating  the  heroism  of  the  revolution, 
and  emulating  the  wisdom,  virtue,  and  patriotism  of  the  founders  of 
our  government,  do  not  conceal  their  contempt  for  all ;  how  can  it  be 
otherwise  than  that  our  country  needs  the  faithful  devotion  and  services 
of  all  who  would  preserve  the  Constitution  and  perpetuate  the  Union? 
When  there  are  thousands  of  those  of  foreign  birth  in  our  midst,  fol- 
lowers and  disciples  of  Paine,  Heine,  and  other  infidel  writers,  who 
concert  together,  and  in  an  organized  form  seek  to  secure  the  adoption 
of  measures  Avhich  would  inevitably  destroy  our  system  of  government, 
and  be  a  warfare  against  the  Cliristian  religion,  it  would  assuredly 
seem  to  be  high  time  that  the  descendants  of  the  sires  of  1776  should 
make  some  effort  to  inspire  reverence  for  historical  names  and  respect 
for  revolutionary  virtue,  to  reinstate  the  authority  of  the  framers  of 
our  government,  and  establish  anew  their  precepts  and  examples  in 
the  hearts  of  the  people.  When  these  men  publicly  proclaim  that  they 
'  hold  the  sabbath  laws,  tJianlsgivhig  days,  j^rayers  in  Congress  and 
legislatures,  the  ocdhs  upon  the  Bible,  the  introduction  of  the  Bible  into 
the  free  schools,  the  exclusion  of  cdheistsfrom  legal  acts,  (t'C,  as  an  open 
violation  of  humoji  rights  as  icell  as  of  the  Constitution,  and  demand 
their  removal;'  and  when  men  of  foreign  birth  openly  threaten,  that 
'  year  by  year  the  Irish  are  becoming  more  and  more  powerful  in 
America;'  and  that  when  'the  propitious  time  will  come,  they  mean 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  19 

to  use  the  Americans  for  their  own  purposes.'  When  these  things 
are  openly  and  boldly  avowed,  it  becomes  the  duty  of  all  true  Americans 
to  revert  to  first  principles,  and  remember  those  lessons  taught  and 
practised,  by  their  revolutionary  ancestors,  and  to  restudy  the  prin- 
ciples and  precepts  of  the  founders  of  the  republic,  with  which  those 
now  promulgated  by  the  foreigners  among  us  are  in  such  strange  and 
startling  contrast." 

IMPORTATION  OF  CONVICTS  AND  PAUPERS. 

It  is  not  alone,  however,  in  the  effects  following  the  influx  of  vicious 
foreigners  that  we  have  the  evidence  of  the  evil  consequences  resulting 
from  it.  We  are  left  in  no  doubt  as  to  the  fact  that  a  large  number 
of  them  are  paupers  and  convicts,  whose  passage  across  the  Atlantic 
is  paid  for  them,  and  who  come  here  without  character,  morality,  re- 
ligion, industry,  or  anything  else  to  commend  them  to  our  favor.  A 
policy  has  long  prevailed  on  the  continent  of  Europe  to  transport  pau- 
pers and  criminals  to  this  country.  As  early  as  1836  and  1837  this 
evil  attracted  the  attention  of  the  municipal  governments  of  Boston, 
New  York,  Newark,  Baltimore,  and  New  Orleans,  and  measures  were 
taken  by  them  to  arrest  and  guard  against  it.  The  legislature  of 
Massachusetts  in  1836  examined  into  the  subject^  and  finding  ample 
proof  of  the  introduction  of  this  class  of  foreigners  by  their  govern- 
ments, adopted  a  resolution  of  instructions  to  their  senators  "to  use 
their  endeavors  to  ol)tain  the  passage  of  a  law  to  prevent  the  introduc- 
tion of  foreign  paupers  into  this  country,  and  to  favor  any  other  meas- 
ure which  Congress  may  be  disposed  to  adopt  to  effect  this  object  " 
Hon.  John  Davis,  then  one  of  the  senators  from  that  State,  presented 
this  resolve  on  the  2d  May,  1836,  and  made  a  speech,  in  which  he 
made  some  startling  disclosures  of  the  magnitude  of  the  evil  com- 
plained of,  and  asked  to  be  remedied.*  The  Senate  adopted  a  resolu- 
tion requesting  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  obtain  all  the  informa- 
tion he  could  in  relation  to  the  matter,  and  report  at  the  next  session. 
Pursuant  to  this  request  of  the  Senate,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
made  a  report  on  the  7th  December,  1836,  from  Avhich  a  number  of 
documents  are  extracted,  and  form  a  part  of  the  appendix  annexed  to 
this  report. t  A  reference  to  these  only  is  necessary  to  satisfy  the 
mind  of  the  most  incredulous  that  there  existed  ample  cause  for  the 
evil  complained  of. 

During  the  summer  of -1837  the  evil  became  so  alarming  that  the 
city  authorities  of  Boston,  New  York,  Newark,  Baltimore,  and  New 
Orleans  took  some  action  on  the  snbject,  but  accomplished  very  little. 
A  ship  load  of  Hessian  convicts,  numbering  from  200  to  250,  Avere 
brought  into  the  port  of  Baltimore  witli  manacles  and  fetters  remain- 
ing on  their  hands  and  feet  until  within  the  day  of  their  arrival. 
General  Samuel  Smith,  then  mayor,  on  discovering  the  character  of 
the  passengers,  detained  the  vessel  at  Fort  IMcHenry  until  he  could 
communicate  with  the  President  of  the  United  States ;  but  he  was  in- 
formed, on  inquiry,  tliat  there  was  no  renied}'-,  and  was  therefore  re- 
luctantly obliged  to  permit  the  convicts  to  be  landed,  and  turned  loose 

*  Appendix,  1.  t  Nos.  2  to  4,  inclusive. 


20  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

to  prey  upon  society.*  About  the  same  time,  or  soon  after,  a  gross 
violation  of  the  quarantine  laws  was  perjjctrated,  which  aroused  a 
strong  indignation  at  Newark  and  in  New  York.  The  master  of  the 
British  ship  Lockwood  landed  his  pauper  passengers  at  Amboy,  and 
went  to  sea^  and  still  more  of  the  same  class  were  about  arriving  or  be- 
ing landed  when  the  escape  of  the  Lockwood  became  known.  The  fact 
being  communicated  to  Mayor  Clark,  of  New  York  city,  by  the  health 
officer  at  quarantine,  the  mayor  addressed  a  message  to  tlie  city  council, 
communicating  all  the  facts,  on  which  the  council  took  action,  and 
adojited  some  measures  to  guard  against  the  introduction  of  such  con- 
victs and  paupers. t 

In  April,  1838,  the  House  of  Representatives  adopted  a  resolution, 
requesting  the  President  to  communicate  co2)ies  of  all  correspondence 
and  communications  Avith  foreign  governments  relating  to  the  intro- 
duction of  foreign  paupers,  and  what  steps^  if  any,  had  been  taken  to 
prevent  the  introduction  of  such  paupers.  In  reply  to  this  request, 
President  Van  Buren  forwarded  a  number  of  documents  to  the  House, 
the  most  important  of  which,  showing  the  existence  of  such  a  policy 
on  the  part  of  certain  European  governments,  will  be  found  in  the  ap- 
pendix annexed  to  this  report. |  These  documents  were  referred  to  a 
select  committee,  which,  through  its  chairman,  Mr.  Russell,  of  New 
York,  made  a  report  some  time  afterwards^  but  no  action  was  had  on 
the  subject.  Accompanying  the  report  are  a  number  of  letters,  which 
throw  a  flood  of  light  on  the  subject,  and  are  hereto  annexed  in  the 
appendix. t  This  report  and  the  documents  accompanying  it  are  well 
worthy  of  a  careful  examination.  They  show  that  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  convicts  and  paupers  were  then  already  im})orted  into 
this  country  to  fill  our  alms-houses  and  jails;  but  the  evil,  as  it  is  shown 
then  to  have  existed,  was  but  insignificant  as  compared  with  the  im- 
mense number  of  paupers  and  criminals  with  which  the  country  has 
since  been  flooded  from  Europe. 

During  the  session  of  Congress  in  1844-'45,  the  Senate  Committee 
on  the  Judiciary,  of  which  the  late  Mr.  Berrien,  of  Georgia^  was  chair- 
man, had  a  number  of  memorials  and  resolutions  relative  to  the  subject 
referred  to  it.  The  committee  accordingly,  in  pursuance  of  authority 
given  to  it,  issued  commissions  to  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Baltimore, 
and  New  Orleans,  to  take  testimony,  and  made  a  report,  accompany- 
ing which  there  was  a  mass  of  testimony  returned  to  it  by  the  com- 
missioners, the  most  important  and  material  of  which,  to  the  present 
subject  of  inquiry,  will  be  found  in  the  appendix  hereto. §  At  the 
same  session  the  Senate  adopted  a  resolution  requesting  the  Secretary 
of  State  to  communicate  such  information  as  might  be  in  posses- 
sion of  his  department  on  the  subject. 

In  January,  1855,  the  evil  became  so  manifest,  and  assumed  such  a 
magnitude  in  the  city  of  New  York,  as  to  induce  Mayor  Wood  to  ad- 
dress the  President  of  the  United  States  a  letter,  in  which  he  asked 
the  interference  of  the  general  government  to  protect  our  country 
against  these  foreign  aggressions. j|     About  the  same  time  resolutions 

♦Appendix,  15.         f  Appendix,  16.         t  Nos.  17  to  22,  inclusive.         §  Appendix,  241^. 
II  Appendix,  25. 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  21 

of  inquiry  on  the  subject  were  introduced  in  tlie  Senate,  by  Senator 
Cooper,  of  Pennsylvania,  who  made  a  speech  showing  tlie  enormous 
extent  of  the  evil.*  Mayor  "Wood  also  addressed  our  ministers,  con- 
suls, and  other  representatives  in  Europe,  invoking  their  aid  and  co- 
operation to  put  an  end  to  the  evil,  in  reply  to  which  he  received  a 
number  of  letters,  which  were  published,  and  the  most  important 
of  which   will  be  found  in  the  appendix.! 

RIGHT  OF  RELIEVING  OURSELVES  DENIED. 

So  emboldened  have  foreign  powers  become  in  making  our  country 
the  receptacle  for  the  dregs  and  off-scourings  of  their  population,  and 
thus  relieving  themselves  of  the  burden  of  pauperism  and  crime,  that 
some  of  them  even  now  have  the  audacity  to  deny  our  right  to  pre- 
vent them  from  so  doing.  It  will  be  perceived  by  the  following  pre- 
amble and  resolution,  adopted  by  the  government  of  Wurtemberg, 
and  a  copy  of  which  was  transmitted  to  the  German  Emigration 
Society  of  New  York,  in  1855,  that  that  government  has  the  elBFron- 
tery  to  claim  the  right  to  impose  its  jmupers  and  convicts  upon  us, 
and  impudently  denies  our  right  to  relieve  ourselves  by  returning 
from  whence  they  came  their  wretched  outcasts.  The  preamble,  it 
will  be  seen,  fully  admits  that  these  vagabonds  are  transported  at  the 
public  expense. 

•'  Whereas,  It  has  repeatedly  occurred  that  German  emigrants  to 
America,  and  among  them  natives  of  Wurtemberg,  who  desired  to 
return  home  on  account  of  sickness,  or  incapacity  to  labor,  have  been 
forwarded  to  this  country  by  the  German  Emigration  Society,  of  New 
York,  and 

' '  Whereas,  It  is  desirable  that  those  who  have  once  emigrated  to 
America,  cmd  especially  those  luho  have  heen  iransportcd  thither  at  the 
expense  of  the  State,  or  the  communes,  and  are  unable,  whether  or 
not  it  be  from  any  fault  of  their  own,  to  earn  their  subsistence,  should 
not  return  here,  to  be  a  burden  to  the  State  or  the  commune,  {which  in 
that  case  will  have  defrayed  the  expense  of  their  journey  in  vain:)  and 

"  Whereas,  The  American  authorities  are  scarcely  autliprized  to 
send  back  those  who,  having  once  been  admitted  to  the  country,  can- 
not earn  their  subsistence  in  America,  and 

"  Whereas,  It  is  much  less  the  business  of  the  German  Emigration 
Society  of  Ncav  York  to  promote  the  return  of  such  individuals ;  there- 
fore, 

^^  Resolved,  That  necessary  steps  are  to  be  taken  to  prevent  their 
transportation  back  to  this  country." 

POWER  TO  PROTECT  SOCIETY. 

The  Wurtemberger  denial  of  our  right  to  protect  ourselves  against 
their  criminals  and  paupers  is,  in  itself,  strong  evidence  of  the  neces- 
sity which  exists  for  so  doing.  It  is  undoubtedly  true,  as  Yattel,  in 
his  work  on  international  law,  states,  that  "it  belongs  to  the  nation 
and  its  rulers  to  fulfill  the  duties  oi  humanity  towards  strangers;" 

*  Appendix,  26.  t  Nos.  27  to  31  inclusive. 


22  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

but  it  is  equally  true,  as  he  also  states,  that  "  it  belongs  exclusively 
to  each  nation  to  form  her  own  judgment  of  what  her  conscience  pre- 
scribes to  her — of  what  she  can  or  cannot  do — of  what  it  is  proper  or 
improper  for  her  to  do  ;  and,  of  course,  it  rests  solely  with  lier  to  ex- 
amine and  determine  whether  she  can  perform  any  office  for  any 
other  nation,  without  neglecting  the  duty  which  she  owes  to  herself/' 
The  duty  wc  owe  to  our  OAvn  country,  and  its  free  institutions,  is 
tlie  liighest  imposed  on  us  next  to  that  we  owe  to  our  God.  Hence  the 
legislation  to  protect  society  against  the  gigantic  evils  growing  out 
of  the  introduction  into  this  country  of  foreign  criminals  and  paui)ers 
commenced  with  the  settlement  of  the  first  colonists. 

The  pilgrims  at  Plymouth,  as  early  as  1639,  required  the  removal 
of  foreign  paupers.  So  did  other  colonies.  In  Virginia,  laws  were 
passed  at  an  early  period  to  prohibit  the  importation  of  paupers,  &c. 
All  of  the  colonies  had  laws  more  or  less  stringent  on  the  subject,  and 
continued  to  exercise  tlie  power  until  the  adoption  of  the  federal  Con- 
stitution. Massachusetts,  in  1783,  enacted  a  law  forbidding  refugees 
to  return,  and  other  States  followed  her  example  ;  and  the  exercise  of 
this  power  was  fully  recognized  in  the  first  naturalization  laws  passed 
by  Congress,  Avhich  expressly  provided  that  such  refugees  could  not 
become  naturalized  without  special  consent  of  the  States  which  had 
2)rohibited  their  return. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  federal  Constitution,  but  before  the  organi- 
zation of  the  general  government  under  it,  the  Congress  of  the  old 
confederation  unanimously  adopted  a  resolution  recommending  to  the 
several  States  '"'to  pass  laws  for  preventing  the  transportation  of  con- 
victed malefactors  from  foreign  countries  into  the  United  States,"  in 
pursuance  of  which,  all  the  States  did  pass  laws  to  that  effect.  That 
of  Virginia,  passed  in  1*788,  forbid  masters  of  vessels  from  landing 
convicts,  under  a  penalty  of  fifty  pounds,  and  the  provisions  of  those 
passed  by  the  other  States  were  of  a  similar  character.  Though  there 
are  those  who  entertain  doubts  as  to  the  power  of  the  general  govern- 
ment on  the  subject,  it  has  been  exercised  from  time  immemorial  by  the 
various  States  of  the  Union — in  some  as  to  conricts,  some  as  to  paupers; 
some  as  to  refugees,  some  as  to  slaves,  and  some  as  to  free  blacks. 

DUTY  TO  OUR  COUNTRY. 

Adopting  the  sentiment  expressed  by  Mayor  Wood,  in  his  letter  to 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  '^'  that  the  inherent  right  of  every 
community  to  protect  itself  from  dangers  arising  from  such  immigra- 
tion cannot  be  questioned,"  so  it  must  be  conceded  by  every  one  fully 
sensible  of  the  enormity  of  the  evil,  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  commu- 
nity, so  threatened  with  danger,  to  guard  and  protect  itself  against  it. 
If  it  be  the  duty  of  government  to  protect  us  from  foreign  aggression 
with  ball  and  cannon,  it  surely  must  also  be  within  the  scope  of  its 
duty  to  protect  an  enemy  more  insidious  and  destructive,  though 
coming  in  another  form.  The  evil  is  upon  us,  and  it  is  our  impera- 
tive duty  to  relieve  the  country  from  it  as  far  as  possible.  As  now 
administered,  our  institutions  seem  almost  to  be  alone  for  the  use  of 
foreign  paupers  and  criminals,  wliile  we  who  have  established  and 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  23 

support  them,  have  comparatively  verylittle  use  for  tliem.  Ours  has 
been  a  policywhich  has  substantially  rather  invited  than  repelled  the 
refuse  of  Europe  to  our  shores,  that  we  might  su})port  them,  or  suffer 
from  their  idleness  and  crime.  Facts  abundantly  show  to  what  a 
ruinous  extent  our  misguided  philanthropy,  and  ridiculous  sentiments 
of  philanthropy  have  been  carried.  "  Behold,  therefore,  1  will  bring 
strangers  upon  thee,  the  terrible  of  the  nations ;  and  they  shall  draw 
their  swords  against  the  beauty  of  thy  Avisdom,  and  they  shall  defile 
thy  brightness,"  was  the  prophetical  language  of  one  of  the  inspired 
writers,  Avhich  may  with  force  be  just  now  applied  to  us.  Can  it  be 
possible  that  Avith  the  experience  we  have,  there  are  any  among  us  who 
do  not  feel  it  a  duty  to  put  an  end  to  the  evil  under  which  the  country 
now  labors?  It  is  sincerely  to  be  hoped  there  are  none  such.  Our 
duty  is  a  plain  one.  Let  us  manfully  and  faithfully  perform  it.  How 
can  that  be  best  done  ? 

HAS  CONGRESS  POWER  OVER  IMMIGRATION? 

It  is  the  inherent  right  of  every  community  to  protect  itself  against 
all  public  evils  ;  and  why  has  it  not  also  the  power  to  close  our  ports 
againts  convicts  and  paupers,  sent  here  by  foreign  governments^  and 
whose  corrupt  public  morality  disseminate  and  popularize  infidelity, 
disturb  the  public  peace,  degrade  our  character  as  a  nation,  fill  our 
j)risons  and  alms-houses,  and  seriously  impair  the  stability  of  our 
free  institutions  ?  The  power  exists  somewhere,  either  in  the  States, 
or  in  the  general  government,  or  in  both  of  them.  It  is  certainly  true, 
that  the  ninth  section  of  the  Jii'st  article  of  the  Constitution,  which 
provides  that  "  the  migration  or  importation  of  such  persons  as  any 
of  the  States,  now  existing,  shall  think  proper  to  admit,  shall  not  be 
prohibited  by  Congress  prior  to  the  year  1808,  but  a  tax  may  be  im- 
posed on  such  importation,  not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  person," 
was  at  the  time  of  its  adoption  generally  understood,  perhaps,  as  ap- 
plying altogether  to  slaves  ;  and  it  is  equally  true,  that  the  power  of 
Congress,  under  that  provision,  to  regulate,  restrain,  or  prohibit  the 
immigration  of  foreigners,  or  whether,  under  it,  Congress  has  any 
power  over  the  subject  at  all,  is  not  well  settled  even  to  the  present 
time.  Two  of  the  framers  of  the  Constitution,  both  of  whom  were 
eminent  jurists,  and  afterwards  held  seats  on  the  bench  of  the  Su- 
preme Court,  seem  to  have  clearly  understood  the  section  referred  to 
as  conferring  such  power  upon  Congress.  Judge  Wilson,  in  the  Penn- 
sylvania convention  which  ratified  the  Constitution,  referred  to  this 
provision,  in  reply  to  objections  urged  against  it  by  Mr.  Findley,  and 
gave  it  this  construction.*  So  did  Judge  Iredell,  in  the  North  Carolina 
convention,  in  reply  to  a  similar  objection  made  to  it  by  Mr.  GalloAvay.f 
Robert  Goodloe  Harper,  another  member  of  the  convention  which 
framed  the  Constitution,  admits  that  the  intention  was  to  confine  tax- 
ation to  slaves,  but  in  his  letter  to  the  Maryland  legislature  contended 
that  the  language  employed  was  such  as  to  extend  the  tax  to  immi- 
grants as  well  as  slaves. | 

*  See  No.  32.  j  See  No.  33.  |  See  No.  34. 


24  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

The  construction  tliiis  given  to  the  Constitution  seems  to  be  sus- 
tained by  various  judicial  opinions.  In  the  celebrated  case  of  Gihhons 
V.  Ogden,  reported  in  Wheaton,  vol.  9,  Chief  Justice  Marshall,  in  de- 
livering the  opinion  of  the  court,  held  the  following  language  in 
relation  to  the  section  of  the  Constitution  now  under  consideration  : 
''The  section  which  restrains  Congress  from  prohibiting  the  migra- 
tion or  importation  of  such  persons  as  any  of  the  States  may  think 
proper  to  admit  until  1808,  has  always  been  considered  as  an  excep- 
tion from  the  power  to  regulate  commerce  ;  and  certainly  seems  to 
class  migration  with  importation.  Migration  applies  as  appropriately 
to  voluntary,  as  importation  does  to  involuntary  arrivals ;  and,  so  far 
as  an  exception  from  a  power  proves  its  existence,  this  section  proves 
that  the  power  to  regulate  commerce  applies  equally  to  the  regulation 
of  vessels  employed  in  transporting  men,  Avho  pass  from  place  to  place 
voluntarily,  and  to  those  who  pass  involuntarily."'  And  so  Justice 
Johnson,  who  concurred  with  the  majority,  but  delivered  a  separate 
opinion,  seems  to  have  construed  that  provision  of  the  Constitution. 
His  language  was  as  follows:  "Commerce,  in  its  simplest  significa- 
tion, means  an  exchange  of  goods ;  but  in  the  advancement  of  society, 
labor,  transportation,  intelligence,  care,  and  various  mediums  of  ex- 
change, become  commodities,  and  enter  into  commerce  ;  the  subject, 
the  vehicle,  the  agent,  and  their  various  operations,  become  the  objects 
of  commercial  regulation.  That  such  was  the  understanding  of  the 
framers  of  the  Constitution  is  conspicuous,  not  only  considers  the 
right  of  controlling  personal  ingress  or  migration,  as  apjilied  in  the 
powers  previously  vested  in  Congress  over  commerce,  but  acknowl- 
edges it  as  a  subject  of  revenue.  And,  although  the  leading  object  of 
this  section  undoubtedly  was  the  importation  of  slaves,  yet  the  words 
are  obviously  calculated  to  comprise  persons  of  all  descriptions,  and 
to  recognize  in  Congress  a  power  to  prohibit." 

In  the  cases  of  Smith  v.  Turner,  and  Norris  v.  Cifi/  of  Boston,  in 
which  the  constitutionality  of  the  passenger  laws  of  Xew  York  and 
Massachusetts  came  under  consideration,  and  which  they  declared  un- 
constitutional. Justice  McKinley  deliv  red  an  opinion  embodying  his 
views  in  relation  to  the  section,  which  seems  entirely  to  accord  with 
those  already  cited;*  and  Justice  Wayne  concurred  in  Justice  Mc- 
Kinley's  interpretation  of  the  section  in  question,  saying  that  it 
includes  within  it  the  migration  of  other  persons  as  well  as  the  im- 
portation of  slaves,  and  in  terms  recognizes  that  other  persons  as  well 
as  slaves  moi/  be  the  subjects  of  importation  and  commerce,"  having 
in  view,  possibly,  convicts  and  paupers,  who  do  not  come  hereof  their 
own  volition,  but  are  transported  at  the  expense  and  under  the  direc- 
tion of  their  respective  governments.  It  is  due,  however,  to  add,  that 
Chief  Justice  Taney,  and  Justices  Daniel,  Nelson  and  Woodbury,  did 
not  concur  with  Justice  McKinley  and  a  majority  of  the  court.  The 
current  and  weight  of  judicial  authority  seems  to  be,  that  the  ninth 
section  of  the  first  article  of  the  Constitution  is  an  exception  to  the 
power  of  Congress  to  regulate  commerce,  so  that  if  it  had  not  been 
introduced,  the  power  to  in-ohibit  the  importation  would  have  resulted 
from  the  general  grant  to  regulate  commerce ;  and  the  section  in  ques- 

*  See  No.  35 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  25 

tion,  according  to  this  construction,  not  only  considers  the  right  of 
controlling  personal  ingress  or  migration,  as  implied  in  the  powers 
previously  vested  in  Congress  over  commerce,  but  acknowledges  it  as 
a  subject  of  revenue. 

POWER  OF  THE  STATES    ON  THE  SUBJECT. 

Whatever  diiference  of  opinion  may  be  entertained  as  to  the  power 
of  Congress  over  immigration,  there  can  be  none  as  to  their  internal 
police  power  of  the  States  being  sufficiently  extensive  to  enable  them, 
if  they  deem  it  necessary  to  exercise  it,  to  exclude  entire  classes  of 
persons.  They  have  reserved  tliat  power  which  relates  to  the  public 
morals,  and  even  in  that  limited  view  would  embrace  pauperism  and 
crime,  whilst  in  law  it  includes  all  legislation  for  the  internal  policy 
of  a  State.  In  the  case  oi  New  York  v.  ilfiYwe,  Justice  Barbour  in 
delivering  the  opinion  of  the  court,  12  Peters,  made  use  of  this  em- 
phatic language:  "We  think  it  as  competent  and  as  necessary  for  a 
State  to  provide  precautionary  measures  against  the  moral  pestilence 
of  paupers,  vagabonds  and  possibly  convicts,  as  it  is  to  guard  against 
the  physical  pestilence  which  may  arise  from  unsound  and  infectious 
articles  imported,  or  from  a  ship,  the  crew  of  which  may  be  laboring 
under  an  infection."  So  Justice  Story,  in  the  case  oi  Prigg  v.  Penn- 
sylvania, expressed  himself  as  follows  on  the  same  subject :  "  We  en- 
tertain no  doubt  whatsoever  that  the  States,  in  virtue  of  their  general 
police  power,  possess  full  jurisdiction  to  arrest  and  restrain  runaway 
slaves  and  remove  them  from  their  borders,  and  otherwise  to  secure 
themselves  against  their  depredations  and  evil  example,  as  they  cer- 
tainly may  do  in  cases  of  idlers,  vagabonds  and  paupers." 

The  internal  police  power  of  the  States  being  complete,  un- 
qualified and  conclusive,  the  only  question  is,  how  far  can  that  power 
be  exercised  by  the  States  without  coming  into  conflict  with  the  power 
of  Congress  over  commerce?  This  is  a  question  not  definitely  or 
clearly  settled;  for  it  involves  unfortunately  a  principle  in  relation  to 
which  a  difference  of  opinion  has  existed,  and  still  exists,  among  the 
judges  of  the  Supreme  Court.  Justice  McLean  in  the  license  cases, 
reported  in  5tli  Howard,  has  laid  it  down  that  the  police  power  of  a 
State,  and  the  foreign  commercial  power  of  Congress,  must  stand  to- 
gether, and  that  neither  of  them  can  be  so  exercised  as  materially  to 
affect  the  other.*  Be  this  as  it  may,  sufficient  power  is  possessed  by 
the  States  to  do  much  more  than  yet  has  been  done  to  stay  the  tor- 
rent of  foreign  crime  and  pauperism,  and  to  guard  and  protect  the 
American  people  from  the  evil  consequences  following  in  its  train. 

WHO  SHALL  REMEDY  THE  EVIL? 

Both  the  general  and  State  governments  can  do  much  to  stay  the 
tide  of  immigration  of  this  undesirable  population,  and  to  protect 
society  against  its  pernicious  influences,  and  the  injuries  it  threatens, 
not  only  to  the  prosperity  and  welfare  of  the  country,  but  the  perpe- 
tuity of  our  republican  institutions.  Each  can,  within  its  own  sphere 
and  the  limits  of  its  constitutional  power,  not  only  adopt  measures 
which  will  contribute  greatly  to  prevent  and  put  an  end  to  the  intro- 

~  *  See  No.  36. 


26  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

duction  of  foreign  convicts  and  paupers,  but  to  save  our  country  from 
the  further  increase  of  the  evils  resulting  from  such  an  accession  to 
our  population.  Both  the  national  and  State  governments  having 
ample  iiower,  -what  is  to  prevent  the  adoption  of  measures  hy  Con- 
gress and  by  the  State  legislatures  to  guard  against  this  gigantic 
evil?  It  is  known,  felt,  and  acknowledged  to  exist;  and  the  most  in- 
different to  the  subject  cannot  but  appreciate  the  imminence  of  the 
danger  alike  to  the  public  prosperity  and  the  public  morals,  as  well 
as  the  oppressive  character  of  the  public  burdens  it  imposes  upon  our 
countrymen.  The  necessity  for  prompt  and  energetic  measures  to  ar- 
rest its  further  progress  must  be  evident  to  every  sagacious  statesman. 
Let  us  then  have  legislative  action,  State  and  national,  on  the  sub- 
ject. Meet  it  we  must,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  those  in  power  to  meet 
it  at  once,  or  in  a  little  while  longer  it  will  prove  irremedial. 

HOW  TO  BE  REMEDIED. 

So  far  as  State  legislatures  are  concerned,  with  a  few  exceptions, 
they  have  been  as  remiss  as  Congress  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties 
on  the  subject.  Though  they  cannot  enact  laws  that  will  come  in 
conflict  with  the  poAver  of  Congress  over  commerce,  they  may  enact 
such  as  will  materially  prevent  the  landing  of  convicts  and  paupers 
upon  our  shores.  Under  the  reserved  internal  police  power  which 
they  all  possess,  they  may  throw  such  safeguards  around  the  commu- 
nity, and  such  obstacles  in  the  way  of  disembarking  foreign  imbeciles 
and  desperadoes,  as  will  soon  put  an  end  to  their  transportation  hither. 
This  is,  however,  not  all  they  may  do.  They  may  adopt  measures, 
also,  to  remedy  the  evil  which  those  now  in  the  country  have  brought 
upon  it.  Congress  has  not  the  power  to  adopt  and  carry  out  such 
measures  of  reform.  The  States  have  the  power  to  its  fullest  extent, 
and  should  exercise  it  to  restrain  and  suppress  those  evil  influences, 
now  everywhere  felt,  and  which,  if  they  be  not  checked,  will  eventu- 
ally undermine  public  and  private  virtue,  and  public  and  private  lib- 
erty. Congress  can  and  ought  to  exert  its  authority  to  prevent  the 
further  introduction  of  those  who  exercise  such  influence  upon  society, 
but  beyond  this  it  can  accomplish  but  little.  It  cannot  reform,  though 
it  may  materially  aid  in  preventing  a  further  accumulation  here  of  the 
refuse  population  of  Europe,  who,  after  they  come  here  are  only  fit  to 
fill  our  streets  as  beggars,  our  almshouses  as  paupers,  or  our  jails  as 
criminals. 

STATE  MEASURES  OF  REFORM. 

The  only  deductions  fairly  to  be  drawn  from  the  facts  adduced  in 
regard  to  the  immigration  of  foreign  paupers  and  criminals  are 
plainly  and  unmistakeably  these  : 

First.  That  it  is  the  chief  source  of  intemperance,  and  the  main 
cause  of  the  alarming  increase  of  that  great  public  evil  in  our  country. 

Second.  That  it  has  filled  our  commercial  cities  with  a  foreign  con- 
vict and  pauper  population,  the  material  of  which  mobs  are  made  to 
such  an  extent  as  to  endanger  the  public  peace  and  the  public  morals, 
and  to  be  generally  regarded  as  a  frightful  evil. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  27 

TJiird.  That  it  is  a  fruitful  source  of  pauperism,  and  the  chief  cause 
of  its  fearful  increase  within  the  last  few  years. 

Fourth.  That  it  is  a  prolilic  source  of  crime,  and  that  to  it  the  enor- 
mous increase  of  crime  may  almost  wholly  be  attributed. 

Fifth.  That  it  has  brought  upon  the  country  a  large  juvenile  vagrant 
population,  now  growing  up  to  prey  upon  society,  whicli  is  fearfully 
on  the  increase,  and  almost  entirely  of  foreign  origin. 

Sixth.  That  it  is  the  source  of  ignorance,  the  mother  of  crime,  till- 
ing our  country  with  a  people  whose  vicious  propensities  predominate 
over  both  the  moral  and  intellectual  faculties,  and  avIio,  urged  on  by 
ungoverned  appetites  and  passions,  with  fancied  or  superstitious  objects 
in  view,  constitute  a  population  from  which  the  country  has  nothing 
to  expect  but  evil  to  its  free  institutions. 

Seventh.  That  it  has  brought  into  the  country  a  large  body  of  men 
who  arc  inimical  to  our  free  institutions  and  our  social  organization, 
and  who  are  devoted  to  dogmas  and  creeds,  which  experience  as  well 
as  all  past  history  have  shown  to  be  not  only  incompatible  with 
republican  institutions,  or  a  well  regulated  constitutional  liberty,  but 
antagonistic  to  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  mankind;  and  which,  if 
carried  out  here,  would  make  this  country  a  pandemonium  on  earth. 

Eighth.  That  it  has  flooded  our  countr}^  with  irreligion,  immorality, 
and  licentiousness,  and  is  the  source  from  whence  infidelity  comes. 
State  legislation  can  reach  many  of  these  evils,  and  it  behooves  the 
State  legislatures  to  institute  the  necessary  measures  of  reform  on  the 
subject.  Among  those  which  commend  themselves  as  most  likely  to 
be  effective  are : 

First.  The  adoption  of  a  State  policy  which  will  discountenance  the 
esprit  du  corps,  now  so  studiously  cultivated  among  foreigners  in  our 
large  cities,  which  is  calculated,  if  not  designed,  to  keep  them  for- 
eigners in  feelings,  sentiments,  and  habits,  though  they  enjoy  the 
benefits  of  our  institutions  and  owe  allegiance  to  our  laws.  Let  their 
separate  and  distinctive  civil  and  military  organizations,  wherever 
they  exist,  be  frowned  down,  and  a  policy  be  pursued  which  will 
break  up  and  destroy  those  foreign  organizations,  and  oblige  those 
belonging  to  them  to  identify  themselves  with  the  country  of  their 
adoption,  and  to  be  naught  else  than  what  they  ought  to  be — Ameri- 
cans, and  only  Americans. 

Second.  The  rigid  enforcement  of  all  license  laws  authorizing  the 
sale  of  liquor^  promptly  punishing  those  who  violate  them,  and  the 
adoption  of  a  jjrovision  in  all  those  laws,  like  that  passed  by  the  re- 
cent legislature  of  Pennsylvania,  prohibiting  a  license  to  be  granted 
for  the  sale  of  liq^uor  to  any  other  than  a  citizen  of  the  United  States. 
Experience  demonstrates  that  most  of  the  grog  shops  in  cities  are  kept 
by  unnaturalized  foreigners,  who  will  thus  be  excluded  from  pursuing 
a  business  fraught  with  misery  and  crime. 

Third.  The  adoption  of  measures,  as  far  as  is  practicable,  to  indem- 
nify the  State  in  case  those  landed  upon  its  shores  shall  become  pau- 
pers, and  to  compel  those  maintained  by  the  public  to  earn  their 
support,  if  possessed  of  sufiicient  health  and  strength  to  do  so,  and 
thus  present  to  them  tlie  alternative  of  honest  industry  or  starvation. 
A  rigid  enforcement  of  such  a  policy  would  soon  rid  the  public  of  the 


28  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

body  of  mendicants  who^  too  indolent  to  work,  though  abundantly 
able  to  do  so,  now  crowd  our  thoroughfares  and  till  our  jioor-houses. 

Fourth.  The  more'prompt  conviction  and  more  certain  punishment 
of  all  offenders,  and  the  abandonment  of  that  mistaken  zeal  of  philan- 
thropy which  now  steps  in  so  often  between  the  outraged  laws  and 
their  violators. 

Fifth.  The  establishment  of  institutions  so  as  to  take  charge  and 
provide  for  all  that  class  of  juveniles  known  as  delinquents  or  vagrants. 
Though  our  common  schools  are  in  a  more  advanced  state  than  those 
in  any  other  part  of  the  world,  our  reformatory  efforts  to  save  neg- 
lected and  forsaken  children  have  not  kept  pace  with  our  progress  of 
common  school  education,  and  hence  our  country  is  now  cursed  with 
so  large  a  juvenile  population  growing  up  in  vice  and  crime.  This  is 
an  alarming  evil,  and  demands  prompt  legislative  attention.  In  a 
government  like  ours,  where  all  power  is  derived  from  the  people, 
they  should  be  wise,  virtuous,  and  enlightened,  lest  they  abuse  it. 
How  can  we  expect  the  next  generation  to  be  so,  if  a  large  portion  of 
it  is  permitted  to  grow  up  in  sottish  ignorance  and  brutal  sensuality, 
and  sure  of  becoming  adepts  in  crime  long  before  arriving  at  man- 
hood? Xot  only  have  we  been  remiss  in  establishing  and  maintaining 
a  sufficient  number  of  these  iuvenile  reformatorv  institutions,  but, 
good  as  our  common  schools  are,  much  too  is  yet  required  of  us  in  re- 
gard to  them.  Thousands  of  children,  especially  those  of  foreigners, 
do  not  enjoy  their  benefits,  though  open  to  them.  Thus  far  no  legal 
measures  have  been  taken  to  ensure  all  the  advantages  of  a  common 
school  education.  Is  it  not  a  grave  question,  whether  the  time  is  not 
at  hand  when  the  gross  neglect  of  parents  to  send  their  children  to 
schools  should  receive  some  attention,  and  steps  be  taken  to  guard  the 
public  from  the  evil  resulting  therefrom? 

Sixth.  Lastly,  and  most  important  of  all  at  the  present  juncture,  is 
the  adoption  and  enforcement  of  a  truly  American  policy  on  all  sub- 
jects— one  which  will  tend  to  cultivate  and  develop  an  undying  attach- 
ment to  our  country,  its  history,  and  its  institutions,  and  to  inspire  a 
profound  veneration  and  respect  for  the  examples  of  our  patriotic  rev- 
olutionary ancestors.  One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  Continental  Congress 
was  to  order  an  edition  of  God's  Holy  Book;  and  it  is  not  too  much  to 
say,  perhaps,  that  beyond  all  other  causes  combined  which  enabled 
our  forefathers  to  achieve  independence,  was  the  deep  and  universal 
acquaintance  with  that  Holy  Book,  scattered  among  the  children  of  a 
former  generation,  and  the  training  of  mind  and  heart  and  spirit 
which  they  received.  Nor  is  it  more  than  the  truth,  perhaps,  to  say 
now  that  is  the  remnant  of  that  spirit  which  has  maintained  our  re- 
public up  to  the  present  time.  Is  it  not  then  of  the  first  and  highest 
importance,  now  that  the  land  is  flooded  with  foreign  infidels,  who, 
taught  at  home  to  repudiate  everything  to  be  revered  in  human  insti- 
tutions, have  already  here  raised  the  black  standard  of  atheism,  and 
declared  a  war  of  extermination  against  the  faith  which  supported  our 
ancestors  in  establishing  the  republic,  and  the  hope  which  animates 
us  for  the  future — is  it  not,  in  view  of  all  this,  the  sacred  duty  of  all 
Americans  Avho  love  their  country,  and  mean  to  perpetuate  its  institu- 
tions, to  imitate  the  illustrious  example  of  their  sires,  and  to  insist 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  29 

upon  having  their  chihlren  taught  in  our  schools  the  lessons  of  wis- 
dom to  be  found  only  in  the  Bible,  and  thus  liave  that  Holy  Book  as 
one  of  the  text  books  of  our  public  schools  ? 

Let  a  policy  like  this  be  adopted  by  the  States,  and  let  Congress  ex- 
ercise the  powers  conferred  upon  it  to  arrest  the  evils  so  justly  com- 
plained of,  and  the  public  good,  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the 
country,  and  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  the  people,  will  be  thereby 
promoted . 

TO  ALL  TRUE  REPUBLICANS  IN  THE  UNION. 

The  free  (;ierraans  of  the  Union  have  found  it  necessary  to  organize 
themselves  for  the  purpose  of  being  able  to  exercise  a  political  activity 
proportionable  to  their  number  and  adapted  to  their  principles.  There 
is  a  lair  prospect  for  success  for  such  an  organization,  and  in  this  hope 
the  free  Germans  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  have  proceeded  to  lay  down 
the  following  platform,  which  they  unanimously  agreed  upon  in  a 
mass  meeting,  and  make  it  known  to  the  public  at  large  as  the  stand- 
ard ot  their  political  course. 

The  free  Germans  furthermore  indulge  in  the  hope  that  it  will  be 
l)0ssible  to  form  a  powerful  reform  party,  embracing  all  who  want 
that  liberty  now  so  much  endangered,  and  the  progress  and  happi- 
ness of  this  our  common  republic  to  be  secured  on  principles  lasting, 
truly  republican  and  democratic.  They  wish,  after  having  completed 
their  organization,  to  establish — with  the  aid  of  their  liberal-minded 
fellow-citizens — such  a  power  of  votes  as  to  be  able^  in  1856,  to  decide 
the  victory  in  favor  of  a  party  of  true  reformers. 

The  editors  of  public  papercj  who  will  enter  into  a  discussion  of  the 
platform — which  we  invite  them  to  do,  sine  ira  et  studio ,  that  is,  before 
all,  without  narrow-minded  nativism  and  blind  party  spirit — are 
politely  requested  to  favor  us  with  a  copy  of  the  number  or  numbers 
containing  their  arguments.  Address  Charles  Heinsen,  editor  of  the 
Pioneer,  Louisville,  Kentucky^  letter  box  1,157. 

BURGELER, 
L.  WITTIG, 
STEIN, 

B.  DOMSCHKE, 

C.  HEINSEN, 

Committee. 
LouisviLLH,  Ky.,  March,  1854. 

PLATFORM  OF  THE  FREE  GERMANS. 

1.  Slauerjj  Question. — Notwithstanding  that  we  consider  slavery  to 
be  a  ])olitical  and  moral  cancer,  that  Avill  by  and  by  undermine  all 
republicanism,  we  deem  its  sudden  abolition  neither  possible  nor 
advisable.  But  we,  as  republicans  and  men,  demand  that  the  further 
extension  of  slavery  be  not  constantly  urged,  whilst  not  a  single  step 
is  taken  for  its  extermination.  We  demand  that  at  length  real  proofs 
be  given  of  the  good-will  so  often  boasted  of  to  remove  the  evil;  that 
in  particular  slavery  be  excluded  from  all  new  territories  indiscrimi- 


30  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

nately  and  forever,  which  measure  Congress  is  completely  entitled  to 
pass  according  to  the  Constitution;  we  demand  this  the  morC;,  as  a 
repuhlican  constitution  is  guaranteed  to  every  new  State,  and  slavery, 
in  truth,  cannot  be  considered  a  republican  element  or  requisite.  We 
further  demand  that  all  and  every  one  of  the  laws  indirectly  transport- 
ing the  iU'inciple  and  the  influence  of  slavery  in  and  upon  free  States, 
namely,  the  fugitive  slave  law,  shall  be  repealed,  as  demoralizing  and 
degrading,  and  as  contrary  to  human  rights  and  to  the  Constitution  ; 
we  tinally  demand  that,  in  all  national  affairs,  the  principle  of  liberty 
shall  be  strictly  maintained,  and  even  in  the  several  States  it  be  more 
and  more  realized  15y  gradual  extermination  of  slavery. 

2.  Religious  Questions. — We  consider  the  right  of  free  expression  of 
religious  conscience  untouchable,,  as  we  do  the  right  of  free  expression 
of  opinion  in  general ;  we  therefore  accord  to  the  believer  the  same 
liberty  to  make  known  his  convictions  as  we  do  the  non-believer,  as 
long  as  the  rights  of  others  are  not  violated  thereby.  But  from  this 
very  principle  of  liberty  of  conscience  we  are  decidedly  opposed  to  all 
compulsion  inflicted  to  dissenting  persuasions  by  laws  unconstitution- 
ally restricting  the  liberty  of  expression.  Religion  is  a  private  matter  ; 
it  has  nothing  to  do  with  policy;  hence  it  is  despotism  to  compel 
citizens  by  political  means  to  religious  manifestations  or  omissions 
contrary  to  their  private  persuasions.  We  therefore  hold  the  sabbath 
laws,  thanksgiving  days,  prayers  in  Congress  and  legislatures,  the 
oaths  upon  the  Bible,  the  introduction  of  the  Bible  into  the  free  schools, 
the  exclusion  of  "atheists"  from  legal  acts,  etc.,  as  an  open  violation 
of  human  riglits  as  well  as  of  the  Constitution,  and  demand  their 
removal. 

3.  Measures  for  the  welfare  of  the  people. — As  the  foremost  of  such 
measures — we  consider  the  free  cession  of  public  lands  to  all  settlers  ; 
to  occupy  nature,  the  soil  as  exclusive  property,  this  no  individual 
has  a  right  to  do  ;  it  is,  for  the  time,  the  common  principal  fund  of 
that  population  v/hich  inhabits  it,  and  anybody  willing  to  cultivate 
it  has  an  equal  right  to  appropriate  a  share  of  the  soil^,  as  far  as  it  is 
not  disposed  of^  for  purposes  of  common  interest.  It  is  high  time  that 
the  ruinous  traffic  with  the  public  lands  should  be  abolished,  that  the 
wasting  of  them  by  speculation  should  cease,  and  that  the  indigent 
])eople  enter  upon  their  rightful  possession. 

But  if  this  end  shall  be  fully  attained,  it  will  bo  required  to  aid 
poor  colonists,  at  their  first  settlement,  Avith  national  means,  lest  said 
measures  prove  useless  for  these  very  persons  who  most  need  it. 

In  the  closest  connexion  with  the  land  reform  question  stands  that  of 
immigration,  which  by  its  general  importance  should  be  raised  to  the 
rank  of  a  national  affair,  and  for  whicli  a  special  office  of  colonization 
and  immigration  should  be  created  as  a  particular  department  of  the 
United  States  government.  Such  a  board  would  have  to  provide  for 
the  various  interests  of  immigrants,  who  are  now  helplessly  exposed  to 
so  many  sufierings  and  wrongs  and  abuses  from  the  place  of  embark- 
ation in  Europe  to  the  place  of  their  settlement  in  America.  North 
America  is  neglecting  herself  when  neglecting  the  immigration,  for 
immigration  is  the  mother  of  this  republic. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  31 

The  admission  of  citizenship  must  be  rendered  as  easy  as  possible 
to  the  immigrants. 

The  welfare  of  a  nation  cannot  be  generally  and  permanently  secured 
unless  its  laboring  classes  be  made  independent  of  the  oppression  of 
the  capitalist  Labor  has  an  incontestible  claim  to  the  value  of  its 
products.  Where  it  is  prevented,  by  the  want  of  the  necessary  capital, 
to  secure  this  claim,  it  is,  of  course,  referred  to  an  alliance  with  capital 
of  others.  But  if  no  just  agreement  can  be  obtained  by  this  association 
with  the  capitalist,  tlicn  tlie  State,  as  the  arbitrator  of  all  contending 
interests,  has  to  interfere.  This  must  either  aid  the  associations  of 
working  men  by  credit  banks,  or  mediate  between  the  claims  of  the 
laborer  and  the  capitalist,  by  fixing  a  minimum  of  wages  equally  the 
value  of  the  labor,  and  a  maximum  of  labor  answering  the  demands 
of  humanity.     The  time  of  labor  shall  not  exceed  ten  hours  per  day. 

In  letting  out  State  contracts,  the  preference  should  be  given,  if  it 
can  be  done  without  running  a  risk,  to  associations  of  workmen,  rather 
than  to  single  contractors.  But  when  given  to  single  contractors, 
tlie  latter  ought  to  give  security  for  proper  wages  to  the  workmen 
employed  by  them. 

In  order  to  enjoy  ''life,  liberty  and  happiness,"  all  indiscriminately 
must  have  the  use  of  free  schools  for  all  branches  of  education,  in 
which,  wherever  a  sufficient  number  of  Germans  live,  a  German 
teacher  should  be  employed. 

In  order  that  the  attainment  of  justice  may  no  longer  remain  a 
privilege  for  the  possession  of  money_,  justice  must  be  dispensed  with- 
out fees. 

4.  Constitutional  Questions. — Considering,  as  we  do,  the  American 
Constitution  as  the  best  now  in  existence,  we  yet  think  it  neither  per- 
fect nor  unimprovable.  In  particular  we  hold  the  following  amend- 
ments and  additions,  likewise  acceptable  for  tlie  State  constitution,  as 
timely  and  proper  means  to  check  the  prevailing  corruption,  to  wit: 

1.  All  elections,  without  any  exception,  should  issue  directly  from 
the  people. 

2.  Any  eligible  citizen  of  any  State  may  be  elected  as  member  of 
Congress  by  the  citizens  of  any  other  State,  and  likewise  may  any 
eligible  denizen  of  any  county  be  elected  by  the  citizens  of  any  other 
county  for  a  member  of  the  State  legislature. 

3.  Any  representative  and  officer  may  at  any  time  be  recalled  by 
the  majority  of  his  constituents  and  replaced  by  another. 

5.  Free  Trade. — We  decidedly  profess  the  principle  of  free  trade, 
and  will  support  it  in  all  cases  where  it  may  be  carried  through  with- 
out disadvantage  to  the  people,  and  where  reciprocity  is  accorded  by 
the  other  side. 

6.  Foreign  Policy. — The  policy  of  neutrality  must  cease  to  be  an 
article  of  our  creed  and  ought  to  be  abandoned  soon,  as  contrary  to 
the  interests  of  North  America.  The  rights  of  American  citizens  and 
immigrants  having  declared  their  intention  to  become  citizens,  must 
the  more  energetically  be  protected  in  foreign  countries,  since  every 
American  appears  to  monarchical  and  despotical  governments  as  a 
representative  of  revolution  against  despotism_,  and  this  republic  ought 
to  honor  this  point  of  view  as  the  only  one  worthy  and  legitimate. 


32  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

7.  Bights  of  Woman. — The  Declaration  of  Independence  says,  that 
"all  men  are  born  ec|ual,  and  endowed  with  inalienable  rights,  and  to 
these  belong  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness."  We  repeat- 
edly ac\ppt  this  principle,  and  are  of  the  opinion  that  woman,  too,  are 
among  "all  men." 

8.  Iil(/hfs  of  Free  Persons. — In  the  free  States,  the  color  of  the  skin 
cannot  justify  a  difference  of  legal  rights.  There  are  not  born  two 
men  of  e(|ual  color,  but  still  less  two  men  of  unequal  rights. 

9.  Penal  Laws. — It  is  our  opinion,  that  all  penal  laws  can  only  have 
the  purpose  of  correction,  but  never  the  absurd  puriK)se  of  expiation. 
We  therefore  consider  the  i)cnalty  of  death,  which  excludes  the  pos- 
sibility of  correction,  to  be  as  irrational  as  barbarous. 


No.  1. 

JOHN  DAVIS'  SPEECH. 

''It  is  well  knuwn  that  pauperism  in  Europe  has  become  a  great  and 
oppressive  burden.  In  England,  especially,  it  has  become  so  power- 
ful in  numbers  and  physical  power  as  to  be,  in  some  districts,  almost 
uncontrollable.  The  number  had  not,  to  his  knowledge,  been  accu- 
rately ascertained ;  but  the  means  were  at  hand  to  prove  that  the 
aggregate  and  power  were  great  and  oppressive.  It  appeared^  from 
Parliamentary  documen.s,  that,  in  1818,  the  sums  expended  by  the 
parishes,  in  England  and  Wales  alone,  where  these  corporations  pro- 
vide for  the  poor,  amounted  to  about  thirty-eight  millions  of  dollars, 
a  sum  greater  than  the  whole  revenue  of  this  country  for  public  pur- 
poses. The  burdens,  as  Avell  as  other  evils,  were  so  severely  felt,  that 
public  attention  had  been  drawn  to  the  subject,  with  a  ho})e  of  obtain- 
ing relief.  Much  had  been  written  and  much  said,  but  no  efficient 
action  had  taken  place  up  to  1833,  when  the  king  appointed  a  com- 
mission, with  large  powers,  to  collect  evidence  and  report  to  the  Parlia- 
ment. The  commissioners  appointed  a  large  number  of  sub-commis- 
sioners, assigning  to  each  a  district,  and  authorizing  them  to  collect 
evidence  and  report  to  the  general  board.  They  proceeded  in  the  execu- 
tion of  their  duty,  and  their  reports,  with  the  evidence,  went  with  the 
report  of  the  general  board  into  Parliament,  when  they  were  published, 
and  fill  a  large  number  of  closely  printed  folio  volumes,  which  are 
in  the  possession  of  the  United  States.  These  volumes  shed  light  upon 
this  subject,  which  may  well  fill  the  mind  with  astonishment. 

"This  (said  Mr.  D.)  brings  me  to  a  point  were  I  will  show  the 
interest  which  the  American  people  have  in  this  matter.  In  the  course 
of  the  inquiries  made  by  the  commissioners,  they  discovered  that  some 
of  the  parishes  had,  of  their  own  accord,  and  without  any  authority 
in  law,  as  it  seems,  adopted  the  plan  of  ridding  themselves  of  the  evil 
by  persuading  the  paupers  to  immigrate  to  this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 
And  whom,  Mr.  President,  did  they  send  ?  The  most  idle  and  vicious ; 
furnishing  them  with  money,  besides  paying  their  passage,  and  then 
leaving  them  on  this  continent,  either  to  reform  or  to  rely  on  the  peo- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  33 

pie  here  for  support.  The  commissioners,  forcibly  impressed  with  the 
efficiency  of  this  plan,  as  a  complete  remedy,  strongly  recommended 
to  Parliament  to  adopt  it,  and  to  authorize  the  parishesjto  raise  money 
by  taxes  for  this  purpose.  They  proposed,  too,  that  the  most  idle, 
debauched,  and  corrupt — the  incurable  portion — should  be  selected  for 
this  purjiose,  while  tlie  better  portion  should  be  left,  to  be  reclaimed 
when  detached  from  the  force  of  eyil  counsel  and  evil  example.  They 
do  not,  it  is  true,  propose  to  send  them  to  the  United  States ;  this 
would  be  too  bold  a  proposition,  but  it  seems  they  have  no  objection 
to  their  finding  their  way  hither.  True  to  their  own  sentiments  and 
unconquerable  idleness,  these  paupers  no  sooner  reach  here  than  they 
cast  themselyes  upon  the  public  for  support.  Those  acknowledging 
themselves  to  be  pauper  immigrants  have  been  repeatedly  found  in 
the  House  of  Industry  in  Boston,  with  the  very  money  received  from 
the  parish  concealed  about  them,  and  in  some  instances,  to  prevent 
detection,  sewed  in  their  clothes.  Out  of  866  persons  received  into 
that  place  during  the  last  year^  516  were  foreigners;  not  all,  by  any 
means,  of  this  class,  nor  is  it  possible  to  ascertain  liow  many.  In  this 
way,  Massachusetts  disburses  from  her  public  treasury  over  fifty  thou- 
sand dollars  annually  to  relieve  foreign  paupers,  and  this  but  imper- 
fectly meets  the  expense.  She  has  attempted  to  modify  the  evil  by 
countervailing  legislation,  by  requiring  bonds  from  the  masters  of 
vessels  bringing  foreign  passengers,  conditioned  that  for  a  given  period 
they  shall  not  become  chargeable  to  the  public.  This,  however,  proves 
inadequate ;  for  while  her  laws  on  this  subject  are  more  humane  than 
some  of  her  adjoining  States,  the  immigrants  will  find  their  way  into 
the  commonwealth.  Many,  doubtless,  are  sent  out  to  the  neighboring 
provinces,  and  thence  come  to  us  coastwise;  others,  perhaps,  have  or 
will  enter  by  the  Canada  frontier,  and  penetrate  to  places  where  they 
can  find  the  best  provision  for  them.  They  have  been  detected  in  New 
York  as  well  as  in  Massachusetts. 

"Now,  sir,  is  it  just?  Is  it  morally  right  for  Great  Britain  to  at- 
temi)t  to  throw  upon  us  this  oppressive  burden  of  sustaining  her  poor? 
Shall  she  be  permitted  to  legislate  them  out  of  the  kingdom,  and  to 
impose  on  us  a  tax  for  their  support,  without  an  eftort  on  our  part  to 
countervail  such  a  policy?  AVould  it  not  be  wronging  our  own  virtuous 
poor  to  divide  their  bread  with  those  who  have  no  just  or  natural 
claims  upon  us?  And  above  all,  sir,  shall  we  fold  our  arms  and  see 
this  moral  pestilence  sent  among  us  to  poison  the  public  mind  and 
do  irremediable  mischief?-  Sir,  I  hope  this  country  will  always  afford 
an  asylum  to  the  worthy  and  the  oppressed  of  all  classes  and  con- 
ditions :  but  humanity  makes  no  appeal  to  us  to  receive  and  cherish 
those  who  have  no  respect  for  virtue,  morality,  or  themselves;  those 
who  are  forced  among  us  because  they  are  too  corrupt,  debauched,  and 
indolent  to  be  tolerated  in  a  country  not  over-scrupulous  in  its 
morals." 

H.  Rep.  359 3 


34  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


No.  2. 

United  States  Consulate, 
Bremen,  Sepfemher  5,  1836. 

Sir:  I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  esteemed 
circiihar  of  the  7th  July,  1830,  requesting  information  respecting  de- 
portation of  panpers  from  Great  Britain  and  other  jdaces,  &c.  I  am 
sorry  that  the  information  desired  is  not  to  he  procured  from  authentic 
sources  ;  for,  properly  speaking,  it  cannot  he  said  that  ])aupers  are 
deported  from  Germany,  though  it  may  sometimes  (but  very  rarely) 
he  the  case  that  families,  almoners,  and  civil  authorities,  in  order  to 
get  rid  of  a  burdensome  fellow  or  troublesome  subject,  pay  what  is 
necessary  for  such  a  person  to  cross  the  Atlantic.  But,  among  the 
German  emigrants,  a  great  number  of  whom  annually  embark  at  this 
port,  and  who'nearly  all  go  to  the  United  States,  there  are  many  per- 
sons and  families  who,  when  they  have  paid  for  the  passage,  have 
little  or  no  money  left,  and  probably  many  of  them,  on  arriving  in 
the  United  States,  are  quite  destitute  of  all. 

I  have,  sir,  the  honor  to  remain,  with  the  greatest  respect,  your  most 
obedient  servant. 

H.  W.  BOHME, 

For  JOSHUA  DODGE. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury^, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington. 


No.  3. 


Consulate  of  the  United  States  of  America, 

Hesse  Cassel,  September  8,  1836. 

Honorable  Sir:  1  beg  leave  to  report,  in  conformity  to  your  honor's 
circular  of  the  7th  July  last^  that,  as  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  ascer- 
tain, none  of  the  German  governments  have  caused,  or  even  indirectly 
sanctioned,  any  deportation  of  their  paupers;  on  the  contrary,  their 
laws  and  finances  forbid  such  operation. 

The  only  forced  deportation  which  has  come  to  my  knowledge  is  from 
the  free  Hanseatic  town  of  Hamburg,  the  government  of  which  deports 
from  time  to  time  those  criminals  who  have  been  either  condemned  for 
life  or  a  long  period  ;  they  give  them  the  choice  either  to  endure  their 
time  or  to  emigrate ;  in  which  case  the  government  pays  their  passage. 
A  number  of  them  have  been  sent  to  New  York,  and  thi^  year  to  Brazil . 

The  great  number  of  German  paupers  in  the  United  States  arises 
from  the  low  rate  of  passage-money  which  of  late  has  existed.  Steer- 
age passengers  were  taken  last  spring  from  Bremen,  and  found  with 
good  ]n-ovisions,  at  $16  each  grown  person.  This  price  the  Bremen 
ship-owners  could  only  afford  by  carrying  always  a  large  number,  to 
obtain  which  they  had  their  agents  all  over  in  the  interior  of  Germany, 
and  induced  the  lower  class,  which  live  in  a  very  impoverished  state, 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  35 

to  emigrate,  by  malving  them  "believe  that  labor  Avas  so  much  demanded 
in  the  United  States  that  any  able-bodied  man  could  earn,  as  soon  as 
landed,  $2  a  day.  Young  and  old,  healthy  and  sickly,  thought  now  of 
nothing  but  to  emigrate.  Every  sacrifice  was  made ;  even  their  clothes 
were  sold,  and  if  this  did  not  suffice,  the  balance  begged ;  and  all  those 
who  could  scrape  together  enough  4o  pay  their  passage  went  to  the 
United  States,  where  the  majority  landed  penniless,  and  a  great  num- 
ber of  them,  consisting  of  old  people,  women,  and  children,  unable  to 
work^  as  the  German  governments  do  not  allow  their  young  men  to 
emigrate  until  tliey  have  fulfilled  their  military  obligation.  This 
traffic  on  the  part  of  the  Bremen  ship-owners  will  continue  as  long  as 
the  laws  of  the  United  States  do  not  make  their  masters  liable  for  the 
support  of  the  passengers  which  they  bring  to  the  United  States,  and 
our  shores  will  be  filled  so  long  with  paupers  of  all  kinds. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be    the  honorable  Secretary's  most  obedient 
servant, 

CHARLES  GRAEBE. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


No.  4. 


Consulate  United  States  of  America^ 

Dublin,  September  ],  1836. 

Sir  :  Your  letter  contains  a  copy  of  the  resolution  to  which  it  refers^ 
and,  having  carefully  perused  the  same,  I  beg  leave  to  state,  in  reply, 
that  if  the  word  ''pauper"  is  intended  to  refer  to  that  description  of 
persons  so  termed  in  England  as  being  entitled  to  relief  from  the 
parish,  having  no  poor  laws  in  this  country,  we  are,  of  course,  without 
any  such  ])ersons  in  Ireland. 

Our  poor,  in  this  country,  are  very  poor  indeed — so  poor  as  to  be 
altogether  without  the  means  of  support,  even  lor  a  few  days,  and, 
consequently,  totally  unable  to  provide  the  cost  of  transport  to  a 
foreign  country. 

The  i)0[)ulation  of  Ireland  l)eing  very  great,  and  rapidly  increasing, 
and  the  wages  of  labor  being  very  low,  emigration  has  prevailed  to  a 
riiuch  greater  extent  than  in  England  or  Scotland. 

After  having  made  strict  inquiry  on  the  subject,  1  cannot  ascertain 
that  any  fund  has  l)een  established  by  government,  or  any  public 
body,  or  body  of  individuals,  for  the  deportation  of  emigrants,  and  I 
am  of  opinion  that  none  such  exists;  but  it  is  by  no  means  an  uncom- 
mon occurrence  for  individuals  possessed  of  large  landed  ]iroperties  in 
this  country,  being  desirious  to  thin  or  lessen  the  population  on  their 
estates,  and  to  increase  the  size  of  their  farms  by  throwing  several 
small  holdings  into  one,  to  agree  with  such  tenants  to  pay  the  ex- 
pense of  their  passage  to  Amei'ica.  The  number  so  deported,  however, 
is  not  considerable,  and  has  not,  at  this  port,  exceeded  five  or  six 
hundred  in  the    last    five    or    six    years ;  and  they  have  been  pro- 


36  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

vided,  I  understand,  with  a  few  pounds  eacli,  witli  a  view  to  their 
support  until  they  could  procure  labor  after  their  arrival. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be;  sir,  your  obedient  humble  servant, 

THOMAS  WILSON. 

Levi  Woodbury,  Esq., 

Secretary  of  the  Treasurif,   Washington. 


No. 


K 


3. 


Consulate  of  the  LTnited  States, 

Belfast,  Septemler  1,  1836. 

'^IR  :  In  reply  to  your  ^'circular  to  certain  consuls,"  &c.,  under  date 
of  7th  of  July,  respecting  the  deportation  of  paupers,  I  beg  to  state 
that  there  are  no  paupers  deported  by  the  public  authorities  from 
within  mv  consular  district.  I  however  mav  remark,  that  a  conside- 
rable  number  of  the  emigrants  who  leave  here  for  the  United  States, 
Canada,  &"c. ,  are  supposed  to  do  so  with  little  or  no  property  beyond 
their  sea-stock,  and  consequently  land  abroad  nearly  or  wholly  desti- 
tute. Of  the  number  of  these,  or  the  amount  of  their  provision  or 
property,  if  they  have  any,  there  are  no  means  of  gaining  any  correct 
information  or  estimate,  from  the  circumstance  of  their  emigrating 
as  private  individuals,  on  their  own  resources. 

I  am,  sir,  verv  respectfuUv,  vour  obedient  servant, 

THOMAS  W.  GILPIN. 

The  honorable  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


No.  6. 


United  States  Consulate, 

Rotterdam,  September  13,  1836. 

Sir  :  In  reply,  I  beg  to  state  that  no  deportation  of  paupers  has 
taken  place  from  this  country.  The  passengers  from  hence  to  the 
United  States  are  chiefly  Germans,  who  emigrate  voluntarily,  and  at 
their  own  expense ;  although  many  of  them  have  but  just  the  means 
to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  voyage,  and  are  destitute  on  their  arrival 
in  the  United  States. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully,  sir,  vour  obedient  servant, 

J.  WAMBERSIE, 

United  States  Consul. 
Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  37 


No.  7. 

Consulate  of  the  United  States  of  America, 

Londo7ider7'y ,  (Ireland,)  Septemher  19,  1836. 

Sir  :  There  has  been  for  many  years  pa,st,  and  still  continues,  a  large 
emigration  fiom  this  port  to  different  parts  of  the  United  States,  and 
also  to  the  British  settlements  in  North  America ;  and  from  my  know- 
ledge on  the  subject,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  stating  that  the  descrip- 
tion of  persons  who  generally  embark  for  the  United  States  from  this 
port  are  of  good  character,  in  comfortable  circumstances,  and  certainly 
many  degrees  removed  from  paupers. 

On  the  contrary,  the  greater  number  of  the  persons  who  embark  for 
the  British  settlements,  on  account  of  the  cheap  conveyance,  are  the 
evil  and  ill-disposed,  who  will  not  do  well  in  their  own  country  ;  and 
the  landed  proprietors  are  glad  to  get  rid  of  them,  which  they  do  by 
paying  their  passages,  and  laying  in  sufficient  provisions  for  the  voy- 
age, totally  regardless  of  how  they  are  to  make  out  life  on  their 
arrival. 

The  reason  why  North  America  is  preferred,  is  on  account  of  the 
cheapness  of  the  passage.    They  are,  therefore,  principally  all  paupers. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be.  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

JAMES  COPuSCADEN. 

Levi  Woodbury,  Esq., 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury  U.  S.,  Washington. 


No.  8. 


Consulate  of  the  United  States  of  America, 

Leith,  August  23,  1836. 

Sir  :  On  the  8th  instant,  I  was  honored  by  the  receipt  of  your  cir- 
cular dated  the  Vth  ultimo,  calling  my  attention  to  a  resolution  adopted 
by  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  on  the  4th  of  July  last,  and  in  reply, 
I  have  the  honor  to  acquaint  you  that  there  are  not  any  paupers  trans- 
ported from  this  or  the  neighboring  ports,  either  to  the  United  States 
or  any  other  country,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  children  (six  boys 
and  five  girls)  sent  last  year  from  the  charity  work-house  in  Edinburgh 
to  the  British  settlements  in  Upper  Canada,  and  they  were  apprenticed 
to  persons  who  were  ascertained  to  be  of  respectable  character  and  in 
good  circumstances. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

ROBERT  GRIEVE. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  I'reasury. 


38  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

No  9. 

Consulate  of  the  United  States, 

Liverpool,  Sei^temher  15,  1836. 

Sir  :  I  lind  it  has  been  the  practice  Avith  many  parishes,  for  some 
years  past,  to  send  abroad  such  of  their  superabundant  population  as 
would  consent  to  go  ;  and  although  there  has  never  been  a  restriction 
as  to  the  place,  they  liaye  invariably  preferred  the  United  States,  and 
ninety  out  of  a  hundred  New  York.  Regular  contracts  are  made  by 
the  diifereut  parishes  with  passenger-brokers  at  this  place  to  ship 
them  ;  the  extent  of  this  deportation,  however,  always  limited  in  com- 
parison with  the  general  emigration,  has  recently  been  much  dimin- 
ished, in  consequence,  probably,  of  the  increased  demand  for  labor,  and 
the  general  prosperity  of  the  couutr}'.  Tlie  following  facts  are  ob- 
tained from  authentic  sources,  and  maybe  relied  on.  In  all  instances 
the  emigration  is  voluntary,  and  the  parish  is  not  relieved  by  it  from 
its  obligation  of  support,  should  the  individual  ever  return.  Convicts 
are  never  sent,  nor  the  inmates  of  work-houses,  nor  those  who,  from 
age  or  decrepitude,  are  unable  to  support  themselves.  Not  one  per- 
son out  of  fifty  is  over  fifty  years  old ;  they  are  generally  young  people 
who  have  made  improvident  marriages,  and  without  ostensible  means 
of  support,  with  increasing  families,  are  likely  to  become  chargeable 
to  their  parish.  Reputed  poachers  are  a  class  of  people  frequently 
sent  from  agricultural  districts  ;  and  out  of  at  least  a  thousand,  of 
various  descriptions,  shipped  ofl"  by  one  of  my  informants^  he  is  quite 
sure,  not  more  than  twenty  have  ever  returned.  Some  provision  is 
always  made  for  their  immediate  support  on  landing  at  their  place  of 
destination.  From  five  to  ten  pounds  is  paid  by  the  shipping  agent 
to  each  individual  on  the  vessel's  leaving  port,  besides  their  passages 
being  paid  for,  and  their  provisions  found  for  the  voyage. 

In  the  year  1830,  the  emigration  from  this  port  to  the  United  States 
is  estimated  at  sixteen  thousand ;  out  of  which  about  six  hundred  were 
sent  from  different  parishes.  In  1832,  there  were  about  five  hundred 
sent  at  parish  expense  ;  since  when,  not  more  than  three  hundred  have 
gone  in  a  similar  way  in  any  one  year ;  and  during  the  last,  although 
the  general  emigration  was  greater  than  at  any  former  period,  out  of 
twenty-four  or  twenty-five  thousand  there  were  but  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  paupers. 

I  have  the  lionor  to  be,  with  great  respect,  your  obedient  servant, 

FRANCIS  B.  OODEN. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


No.  10. 


Consulate  of  the  United  States, 
District  of  Kingston-upon-HuU,  Leeds,  August  30,  1836. 

Sir  :  The  officers  of  the  customs  are  well  aAvare  that  paupers  do 
proceed  both  to  the  United  States  and  Canada,  and  it  has  been  ad- 
mitted by  the  owners  of  several  vessels  sailing  there  that  their  pas- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  39 

sages  are  paid  by  the  overseers  of"  the  parishes  to  which  they  belong. 
The  mode  of  doing  this  varies  according  to  the  trustworthiness  of  the 
pauper ;  if  good,  he  is  trusted  to  make  his  own  bargain,  and  generally 
has  a  trifle  of  money  advanced  to  him  for  use,  when  he  quits  the 
vessel,  to  enable  liim  to  get  up  the  country.  If  the  man  is  a  bad 
character,  he  is  generally  tlic  best  off,  as  the  overseers  pay  his  passage 
money,  and  procure  for  him  the  necessaries  for  his  voyage.  The  man 
then  turns  restive,  and  oftentimes  refuses  to  go  unless  more  money  is 
given  him — generally  £5  or  £10  more  than  was  first  agreed  on.  So 
that  the  worse  the  character,  the  better  able  the  pauper  is  to  make  his 
way  when  he  quits  the  vessel.  One  ship-owner  whose  vessel  sailed 
this  year  to  the  United  States  from  Hull,  and  who  has  had  several 
previously,  says  he  believes  that  nearly  all  the  j)assengers  go  to  the 
back  settlements  to  their  friends,  who  had  jireviously  gone  there,  and 
had  written  for  them  ;  and  that  it  very  rarely  happened  that  any 
family  went  out  on  a  roving  expedition,  not  having  an  object.  It  aj)- 
pears  that  the  greatest  emigration  from  Hull  is  to  Canada,  to  whence 
the  passage  money  is  reduced  ;  and  many  instances  have  been  dis- 
covered where  the  overseers  have  agreed  with  the  paupers,  and  paid 
them  the  passage  money  to  the  United  States ;  but  the  paupers  have 
adopted  the  plan  of  getting  tliere  through  Canada,  on  account  of  the 
moderate  charge  for  the  passage,  by  which  means  they  have  taken 
more  money  with  tliem  into  the  country. 

With  great  respect.  I  am,  sir,  vour  obedient  servant, 

ALBERT  i)AVY, 
Consul,  v.  S.  A.,  Kingston-upon-HuU. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


Ko.  11. 


Custom-house,  Bostox,  September  2T,  1836. 

Sir:  I  received  in  due  course  of  mail  your  letter  of  July  7,  enclo- 
sing a  copy  of  a  resolution  adopted  by  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 
respecting  the  deportation  of  paupers  from  Great  Britain  and  other 
places.  There  are  comparatively  few  emigrants  from  Great  Britain  to 
this  port.  The  principal  emigration  is  of  the  Irish  population,  by  the 
way  of  Nova  Scotia,  New  Brunswick,  and  Eastport,  in  Maine.  I  have 
not  been  able  to  learn,  after  diligent  inquiry,  that  any  paupers  have 
been  sent  out  here  from  Europe.  In  making  inquiries  on  this  sub- 
ject, I  received  the  following  statement  from  Godfrey  McCrae^  now 
master  of  the  Rover,  of  St.  Andrew's,  N.  B.  In  June,  1835,  said 
McCrae  was  mate  of  the  British  sliip  Robert  Watt,  from  London  to 
New  York,  on  board  of  which  were  many  emigrants.  McCrae  was 
informed,  during  the  voyage,  that  about  six  families  of  those  emi- 
grants were  paupers,  sent  out  by  and  at  the  expense  of  their  respec- 
tive parishes.  He  does  not  recollect  the  names  of  the  paupers,  or  the 
parishes  whence  they  came. 
Respectfully,  &c. 

DAVID  HENSHAW,  Collector. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


40  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

No.  12. 

Collector's  Office, 
Philadelphia,  November  29,  1836. 

Sir:  I  am  at  length  enabled  to  forward  yon,  enclosed,  the  report 
from  the  board  of  gnardians  of  the  poor,  on  the  deportation  of  foreign 
paupers. 

I  am,  sir,  very  respectfully,  &c. 

J.  N.  BARKER,  Collector. 
Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


The  committee  to  whom  were  referred  the  communication  and  docu- 
ments received  from  James  N.  Barker,  esq.,  collector  of  the  port  of 
Philadelphia,  in  relation  to  the  deportation  of  paupers  from  Great 
Britain,  report: 

That,  after  having  caused  an  examination  to  be  made  of  the  foreign 
paupers  in  the  house,  they  have  not  been  able  to  ascertain  that  any  of 
them  had  been  sent  to  this  country,  or  to  the  British  provinces,  by 
overseers  of  the  poor  in  England,  or  elsewhere,  or  had  received  aid 
from  any  parish  to  enable  them  to  emigrate. 

The  only  information  having  any  relation  to  the  subject  of  inquiry 
derived  from  their  examination,  is,  that  the  practice  of  sending  away 
persons  chargeable  to  parishes  by  parochial  aid  is  quite  general  in 
England,  and  that  hundreds  have  been  in  this  way  sent.  This  prac- 
tice, however,  as  far  as  they  profess  to  be  informed,  is  confined  to  emi- 
gration to  the  British  settlements. 

Your  committee  would  here  remark,  that  there  is  great  difficulty  in 
procuring  from  a  pauper  any  information  which  might  affect  himself; 
and  that,  should  there  be  in  the  house  any  person  who  had  been  sent 
either  to  this  countr}^  or  to  the  British  settlements  by  parochial  aid, 
the  apprehension  that  he  would  be  discharged  from  the  house  upon  the 
fact  being  known  would  induce  him  to  conceal  it. 

The  reports  of  the  poor-law  commissioners  of  England  furnish  some 
information  as  to  the  deportation  of  paupers  from  that  country.  In 
the  instructions  of  these  commissioners  to  their  agents  in  ditierent  dis- 
tricts, the  attention  of  those  agents  is  particularly  directed  to  emigra- 
tion, as  one  mode  of  relieving  the  parishes  from  their  superabundant 
poor  population,  and  thereby  reducing  the  poor  rates.  They  speak  of 
emigration  generally,  and  do  not  confine  it  to  the  British  settlements. 
So,  in  some  of  the  reports  made  by  those  agents  to  the  commissioners, 
deportation  of  paupers  by  means  of  parish  aid  is  mentioned  as  having 
taken  place,  without  naming  the  country  to  which  they  had  been  sent. 
In  some  reports  the  British  provinces  in  North  America  are  mentioned 
as  their  places  of  destination  ;  and  from  one  report  it  appears  that 
four  families  had  been  sent  by  the  parish  of  Rye  to  New  York.  These 
reports  comprise  but  few  of  the  parishes  in  England  and  Wales — not 
more  than  two  hundred  parishes  out  of  near  fifteen  thousand ;  and, 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  41 

therefore,  while  they  establish  the  fact  that  paupers  have  been  sent 
from  England  to  the  United  States,  as  well  as  to  the  British  settle- 
ments, they  do  not  show  to  wliat  extent  this  practice  has  prevailed  in 
that  kingdom. 

It  may  be  inferred  from  these  reports,  that  the  great  majority  of 
persons  thus  sent  by  the  jiarishes  haj^e  been  taken  to  the  British  set- 
tlements. Inasmuch,  however,  as  these  persons,  when  landed,  have 
great  difficulty  in  procuring  employment,  (a  fact  which  is  mentioned 
in  the  reports,)  and  as  a  large  proportion  of  the  inmates  of  the  house 
who  Avere  born  in  England  and  Ireland  came  to  this  country  from  the 
provinces  where  they  first  arrived,  it  is  more  than  probable  that,  of 
the  persons  thus  sent  to  the  British  settlements  by  parishes  in  Eng- 
land, great  numbers  eventually  come  into  the  United  States. 

The  only  additional  information  on  this  subject  has  been  obtained 

from  Mr.  Brown,  a  gentleman  of  this  city,  who  arrived  at 

New  York  in  the  ship  Sir  Edward  Hamilton,  in  August,  1833,  having 
sailed  from  Hull.  He  states  that,  on  board  of  that  vessel,  came  as 
passengers  a  family  consisting  of  a  man,  his  wife,  and  three  children^ 
whose  passages  had  been  paid  for  by  a  parish  in  the  western  part  of 
Yorkshire;  also,  an  old  man,  whose  passage  had  been  paid  for  by  the 
parish  of  Preston,  in  Yorkshire;  that  on  board  of  the  same  vessel 
were  several  other  persons  whose  passages,  he  believed,  had  been  paid 
for  in  the  same  manner,  although  he  did  not  know  it  with  certainty. 

The  resolution  of  the  Senate  directs  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
to  collect  information  as  to  the  provision,  if  any,  made  for  the  future 
support  of  the  paupers  thus  deported.  On  this  branch  of  the  inquiry 
your  committee  report,  that,  from  all  the  information  they  have  been 
able  to  obtain,  they  are  of  oj)inion  there  is  no  uniform  rule  observed 
as  to  the  j)rovision  made  for  their  future  supports  There  is  no  law 
regulating  the  mode  in  which  paujiers  may  be  sent.  Each  parish,  in 
sending  out  its  paupers,  makes  its  ov^n  agreements,  which  it  may  be 
presumed  are  as  favorable  to  itself  as  the  pauper  is  willing  to  accept. 
Therefore,  whether  the  pauper  is  to  receive,  upon  his  landing,  any 
support,  and,  if  any,  its  extent,  depends  upon  his  agreement  with  the 
parish  that  sent  him.  The  reports  of  the  poor-law  commissioners, 
already  referred  to,  are  silent  on  this  subject.  From  the  examination 
made  of  the  inmates  of  tHe  house,  the  committee  have  ascertained 
that  one  guinea  was  paid  to  each  of  the  paupers  brought  by  one  ves- 
sel to  Quebec,  upon  their  landing  at  tliat  place  ;  that,  in  some  in- 
stances, one  hundred  acres  of  land  in  Canada  were  offered  to  each  of 
the  paupers  upon  their  landing,  which  offer,  by  many,  if  not  the 
greater  number  of  them,  was  declined ;  and  that,  in  other  instances, 
as  far  as  your  committee  are  informed,  no  provision  whatever  was 
made  for  their  future  support. 

Among  the  paupers  in  the  house,  there  are  several  persons  who  have 
been  pensioners  of  the  government  of  Great  Britain,  and  their  being 
in  this  country  is  attributable  partly  to  the  agency  of  that  government. 
Nine  of  these  pensioners  were  examined,  and  from  their  examination 
it  is  evident — 

1st.  That,  in  the  year  1831,  and  since,  the  government  of  Great 


42  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

Britain  invited  all  persons  who  had  served  in  its  armies  and  received 
pensions  to  commute  their  pensions. 

2d.  That  one  condition  of  this  commutation  was,  that  the  pensioners 
should  proceed  to  the  British  settlements  in  North  America,  or  else- 
where. 

3d.  That  the  arrangements  for  the  emigration  of  the  pensioners  and 
their  lamilies  were  generally  made  hy  the  agents  of  the  government. 

4th.  That,  in  some  instances,  the  pensioners  were  sent  to  New  York  ; 
and  that  in  New  York  they  received  from  Mr.  Buchanan,  the  British* 
consul,  a  part  of  the  money  for  which  they  had  commuted  their  pen- 
.sions. 

5th.  That  one  person  thus  sent  to  New  York  is  now  a  pauper  in  this 
house. 

6th.  That  all  pensioners  who  were  willing  to  commute  were  per- 
mitted ;  that  no  difference  Avas  made  whether  the  pensioner  was  old 
and  infirm,  or  strong  and  healthy;  that  many  of  them  were  aged  and 
infirm^  unable  to  work,  and  unable  to  endure  the  climate  of  Canada ; 
in  one  instance  the  pensioner  was  totally  blind,  and  that  hundreds  of 
them,  many  of  whom  have  families,  have  come  into  the  United  States. 

7th.  That  of  these  pensioners,  thus  sent  to  the  British  settlements, 
there  are  at  this  time  nine,  with  the  families  of  some  of  them,  making 
in  all  twelve  persons,  in  this  house. 

8th.  That,  in  the  year  1833,  and  ever  since,  there  have  been  many 
of  these  late  pensioners  with  their  families  in  this  house.  Some  of 
them  now  in  the  house  say  that  there  are  fewer  at  this  period  than 
there  have  been  heretofore. 

Accompanying  herewith  is  a  statement  of  the  admissions  of  paupers 
into  the  house  during  the  year  ending  the  24th  day  of  November^ 
1836,  together  with  their  places  of  nativity  ;  from  which  statement  it 
appears  that^  of  the  whole  number  of  admissions,  viz:  2^781,  there 
were  admitted  natives  of  the  British  dominions     -  1,082 

Natives  of  other  foreign  countries  -  -  -  184 

Total  number  of  foreign  paupers  1,266 


Total  number  of  American  paupers  1,515 

All  of  which  is  respectfullv  submitted.     • 

aEORGE  W.  JONES,  President. 


No.  13. 


Consulate  of  tue  United  States, 

London,  Odohcr  19,  1836. 

Sir  :  From  the  poor-law  commissioners  I  obtained  all  the  facts  and 
information  which  it  was  in  their  power  to  communicate  on  this  subject. 
They  arise  out  of  their  proceedings  by  virtue  of  the  62d  section  of  the 
poor-law  amendment  act,  passed  the  4th  of  August,  1834.  Acting 
under  that  section,  the  poor-law  commissioners  have  frequently  au- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  43 

thorized  parishes  to  raise  money  on  the  security  of  tlieir  rates  for  the 
purpose  of  defraying  tlie  expenses  of  the  emigration  of  poor  persons 
having  settlements  in  such  jjarishes  ;  and  they  have  in  such  cases 
issued  orders  in  accordance  with  the  form  Avhioli  I  have  the  honor  to 
enclose.  In  this  form  is  a  condition  that  the  emigrants  shall  go  to 
some  British  colony ;  and  it  will  he  ohserved  tliat  a  provision  is  made 
that,  on  the  arrival  at  the  place  to  which  the  parties  are  contracted  to 
he  conveyed,  the  sum  of  two  pounds  at  least  shall  he  paid  to  eacli  head 
of  a  family  emigrating,  and  one  pound  at  least  to  each  single  man  or 
single  woman  not  being  part  of  a  family.  The  commissioners  have 
not  felt  it  to  he  within  tlieir  j^rovince  to  make  any  further  provision 
for  the  support  of  emigrants  after  they  shall  have  arrived  at  their  des- 
tination. They  have,  however,  waived  the  condition  "that  parties 
emigrating  shall  go  to  some  British  colony,"  in  a  few  instances;  in 
most  of  which  the  parties  desiring  to  emigrate  had  already  friends  in 
the  United  States.  The  total  number  of  emigrants  who  have  thus  gone 
out  to  the  United  States,  under  the  provisions  of  the  poor-law  amend- 
ment act,  during  the  past  year,  from  July,  1835,  to  July,  1836,  is  191 
out  of  5,141;  the  remainder  of  whom  have  emigrated  to  British  colo- 
nial settlements. 

The  agents  of  this  consulate  have  furnished  me  with  lists  of  emi- 
grants from  their  respective  ports,  most  of  Avhom  are  supposed  to  be 
paupers.  These  lists  are  embodied  on  a  paper  which  I  have  the  honor 
to  enclose.  The  list  of  emigrants  from  Eye,  in  Sussex,  extends  as  far 
back  as  the  year  1829.  The  pauper  emigration  from  that  port  has 
been  greater  than  from  any  other  in  the  district  of  London.  The  class 
of  individuals  who  leave  this  country  by  way  of  the  metropolis  is  very 
much  improved  of  late  years,  having,  in  general,  competent  means  of 
their  own, 

THOS.  ASPINWALL. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


44 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS. 


No.  14. 

Official  return  of  emigrants  from  the  port  of  Rye,  in  Sussex,  from 
182d  to  May,  1836,  both  inclusive;  three-fourths  of  uhom  are  sup- 
posed to  he  paupers. 


Date. 


Ship. 


1829. 
March  23 

31  ] 
April  7  • 
May        5  i 

23  j 
Dec.      27 

1830.      ' 

March  10 

10 

26 

27 

7  ; 

8  j 
7  ! 

24  I 

12  : 

12 


April 

May 

June 
July 
August  10 
gept.     28 

1831. 
March     9 
April     29 

1832. 

April       5 

26 

May        9 

30 

1833. 
April       4 
8 
June      10 

1834. 
April       9 

1835. 
March  31 

1836. 
April     16 
May      25 


Master. 


Samuel  Vedler 
J.  Crowhurst  . . 
John  Frost.. . . 


Where  bound. 


William 
Fame  .. 
Emma.. 

William  Sliand '  William  Boswell ] do . . 

Newton James  Melvin Quebec 


New  York 

. .  .do 

...do 


William  Shand '  William  Boswell New  York 


Emma \  John  Frost .do. 

Fame J.  Crowhurst '. . .  .do. 


Newton ;  J.  Melvin 

Columbia J.  Delano 

Robert  and  Ann George  Richmond 

William Samuel  Vedler  . . . 

Sussex W.  Cranstown  . . . 

Cambria J.  Moore 

United  States !  J.  Knight 

Rapid !  H.  Shoop^ 

Robert  Edwards '  J.  Sherberg 

Corinthian '  R.  Shadwick 


Hudson  INIorgan... 

Alfred T.  Gravet 


.do. 
.do. 
.do. 
.do. 
.do, 
.do. 
.do. 
.do. 
.do. 
.do. 


.do. 
.do. 


Ami M.  Miller do. 

Newton '  J.  Bell I do. 

Alfred I  T.  Gravet ! do. 

William S.  Vedler ' ...  .do. 


Emma John  Frost 

Newton Jolin  Bell 

Ami Matthew  Miller 


.do. 
.do. 
.do. 


Emma John  Frost '....do. 

Alfred ..i  Thomas  Gravet ;. . ,  .do. 


Alfred I  Thomas  Gravet '. . .  .do. 

Socrates R.  Metcalf |. . .  .do. 


No.  of 
passengers. 


47 
35 
99 
142 
25 
90 

88 

37 
102 
158 
129 

26 

92 

17 

83 

57 

27 

40 

18 
62 

92 
96* 
76 
15 

50 
30 
50 

80 


72 
70 


It  could  not  be  ascertained  what  provision  was  made  for  tlie  support 
of  these  emigrants  from  Eve  after  landing.  The  sum  generally  al- 
lowed was  twenty  or  thirty  shillings  for  each,  according  to  the  agree- 
ment they  might  make  with  their  respective  parishes.  This  was  either 
paid  to  them  on  their  going  on  board,  or  given  to  the  master  of  the 
vessel,  to  be  paid  them  on  their  lancling.  The  master  also  received 
four  shillings  and  sixpence,  or  one  dollar,  for  each,  to  be  paid  by  him 
to  the  proper  authorities  in  New  York,  as  required  by  the  law  there. 


^39  was  paid  to  26  paupers  in  the  ship  Newton. 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  45 


Emigration  of  poor  persons  from  Deal,  in  Kent. 

1880,  1  family,  6  in  number,  to  "Western  Australia,  assisted  by  the 

parish  with  fifteen  pounds. 
1833,  1       do.     5  in  number,  to  New  York,  assisted  by  the  parish 

with  twenty-one  pounds. 
1834^  2       do.     4  in  each,  to  New  York,  furnished  with  provisions  for 

the  voyage. 

From  Holden,  in  Kent. 

1832,  1  laborer  to  New  York,  assisted  by  the  parish  with  ten  pounds; 

returned  within  twelve  months. 

From  North  Bourn,  in  Kent. 

1833,  11  persons  to  United  States,  expense  to  the  parish  one  hundred 

and  seventeen  pounds.  Three  of  these  persons  died  in  the 
United  States,  the  others  returned  home  in  about  two 
years. 

1834,  6  persons  to  New  York,  assisted  by  the  parish  to  the  amount  of 

twenty-two  pounds. 

From  Mongsliam,  in  Kent. 

1830,  2  families,  13  number,  to  New  York  ;  cost  the  parish  one  hun- 
dred and  eighteen  pounds. 

From  St.  Lawrence,  in  Kent. 

Forty-six  paupers  have  been  sent  within  the  last  three  years, 
thirty-six  of  whom  went  in  the  ships  "John  Stamp"  and  "Gratitude' ' 
from  Ramsgate  to  New  York.  The  remaining  ten  went  from  London, 
but  by  what  vessel  or  to  what  place  is  unknown.  Whether  any  pro- 
vision was  made  for  them  after  landing  cannot  be  ascertained. 

From  Yarmouth,  in  Norfolk. 

The  first  deportation  of  paupers  from  this  jjort  was  in  1829.  From 
that  year  to  the  end  of  1835  the  annual  average  number  of  vessels 
Avith  paupers  was  four.  During  the  year  1836  fourteen  vessels  have 
sailed  for  Quebec  with  passengers,  the  average  number  of  which  was 
about  eighty  adults  in  each  A'essel,  a  small  proportion  of  whom  was 
landed  at  Prince  Edward's  island. 

Two-thirds  of  the  whole  are  supposed  to  be  paupers.  The  pro- 
vision made  for  their  support  after  landing  was  about  twenty  shillings 
for  each. 

No  vessel  has  sailed  from  Yarmouth  with  passengers  for  any  port 
in  the  United  States. 


46  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

No.  15. 

Mayor's  Office,  Baltimore,  July  5,  183T. 

Sir  :  I  have  the  honor  to  hand  you,  under  a  Wank  cover,  a  German 
newspaper,  and  I  now  enclose  you  a  translation  of  that  part  Avhich 
relates  to  the  United  States.  A  highly  respectable  German  gentle- 
man handed  me  the  newspaper,  and  added  tliat  he  had  reason  to 
believe  that  certain  German  governments  mean  to  disburden  them- 
selves of  bad  characters  by  sending  tliem  to  tl)e  United  States.  I 
have  thought  that  Congress  may  be  disposed  to  take  some  order  on 
the  subject.  Heretofore  they  have  confined  themselves  to  ])aupers  ; 
they  now  seem  disposed  to  make  a  Botany  Bay  of  the  United  States. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be  vour  obedient  servant. 

S.  SMITH,  Mayor. 

M.  Van  Burex,  President  of  the  United  States. 

The  paragraph  alluded  to  states  that  a  letter  lias  been  received  from 
a  friend  in  Germany  giving  information  that  a  transport  of  inmates 
from  the  house*  of  correction  had  sailed  to  America,  naming  Baltimore 
as  the  place  of  destination,  and  that  these  passengers  had  received 
passports  representing  them  as  mechanics,  to  secure  their  landing. 
It  further  states  that  another  vessel,  about  the  same  time,  with  a 
number  of  passengers  of  a  similar  character,  had  sailed,  and  caution- 
ing to  beware  against  a  Mr.  ^'I'osr,"  probably  an  undertaker. 

The  contents  of  this  letter  are  strengthened  by  a  paragraph  from  a 
public  paper  i-rinted  in  the  city  of  Frankfort,  Avhere  the  same  fact 
is  mentioned.  The  above  paragraph,  on  which  tb.e  editor  makes  some 
severe  strictures,  is  grounded  on  another  ])aragraph,  dated  TJorringen, 
April  10,  which  says:  '^' A  transport  of  inmates  from  the  house  of 
correction  in  Gotha  will  sail  from  hence  to  Bremen,  under  the  escort 
of  a  police  officer,  and  from  thence  to  America,  either  to  Xew  York 
or  Baltimore."  This  information  might  be  doubted,  says  tlie  editor, 
if  it  did  not  come  from  so  correct  a  source,  and  therefore  expresses  a 
hope  that  our  autliorities  vrill  take  the  necessary  steps  to  prevent 
tliose  persons  from  being  thrown  on  our  shores. 


Mayor's  Office,  Baltimore,  Aiujust  12,  1837. 

Sir  :  I  did  myself  the  honor  some  time  past  to  send  you  a  German 
newspaper,  with  a  translation  of  a  i)art,  informing  that  the  Germans 
were  sending  their  convicts  to  New  York  and  this  citv.  I  caused  two 
Bremen  ships  wliich  had  arrived  with  passengers  to  be  examined  ; 
there  were  no  convicts  among  them.  Two  other  ships  have  arrived 
since,  on  board  of  one  of  which,  as  I  have  been  informed,  there  came 
fourteen  convicts,  who  were  landed  with  the  other  passengers.  They 
had  been  embarked  in  irons,  which  were  not  struck  otf  until  near  the 
fort.  It  appears  to  me  that  Congress  ought  to  adopt  some  efficient 
act  to  prevent  our  country  being  made  a  Botany  Bay  for  Germany. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be  your  most  obedient  servant, 

S.  SMITH,  3Iayor  of  Baltimore. 

Martin  Van  Buren, 

Prc^'dent  of  the  United  States. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  47 


No.  10. 

Mayor's  Office,  New  York,  June  5,  1837. 
Gentlemen  of  the  Common  Council: 

The  laws  of  tliis  State  require  that  the  captain  of  every  ship  or  vessel 
landing  passengers  in  this  city  from  a  foreign  country,  ov/rom  another 
State,  shall  report  the  name,  last  legal  settlement,  place  of  birth,  and 
occupation  of  such  passenger,  to  the  mayor  of  the  city,  within  twenty- 
four  hours  after  arrival,  under  a  penalty  of  $t5  for  each  passenger  so 
neglected  to  he  reported ;  and  that  every  person  not  being  a  citizen  of 
the  United  States,  coming  to  this  city  with  the  intention  to  reside,  shall 
report  himself  to  the  mayor  within  twenty-four  hours  after  arrival, 
under  a  penalty  of  $100  for  neglecting  to  do  so.     *         *         * 

The  opinion  is  entertained  that  there  is  a  settled  arrangement  in 
some  parts  of  Europe  to  send  their  famishing  hordes  to  our  city.  The 
operations  of  certain  com2:)anies  have  been  noticed.  But  contractors 
are  becoming  so  covetous  that  they  afflict  this  country  with  a  pauper 
population  in  consideration  of  receiving  from  steerage  passengers  miore 
than  $2  per  head  extra,  for  agreeing  to  land  thetn  in  New  York ;  instead 
of  which  these  traders  in  foreign  paupers  secretly  clear  their  vessels 
for  Araboy,  in  New  Jersey,  there  to  land  the  said  passengers,  and 
thereafter  send  them  to  New  York  by  other  conveyance,  or  leave  them 
to  provide  for  themselves.  Our  city  is  generally  the  place  to  which 
they  contract  to  be  carried  on  leaving  Liverpool. 

This  business  is  likely  to  be  fiercely  driven  throughout  the  ensuing 
year.     Hundreds  of  thousands  of  the  population  of  portions  of  Europe 
are  in  a  state  of  poverty,  excitement,  and  wretchedness — the  prospect 
before  them  very  discouraging.     The  old  country  has  more  people 
than  it  is  convenient  to  support.     And  although  many  of  them  feel  no 
particular  anxiety  to  leave  their  native  land,  tliey  see  others  depart — ' 
they  read  the  mixture  of  truth  and  fiction,  j)ublished  by  those  em- 
ployed to  obtain  passengers — they  are  assured  they  can  easily  return 
if  they  are  not  suited  Avith  the  country — that  certain  employment, 
enormously  high  wages,  and  almost  sure  v.ealth  awaits  them.     The 
times  being  more  unpromising  in  other  countries  than  in  our  own, 
they  imagine  they  cannot  change  for  the  W(n-se,  and  hither  they  come. 
They  cannot  fail  to  be  an  intolerable  burden  to  us.     As  soon  as  they 
arrive  Avithin  our  limits,-  many  of  them  begin  to  suffer  and  to  beg. 
►Some  of  those  by  the  "  Lockwoods"  commenced  as  mendicants  on  the 
first  day  they  saw  our  city,  and  some  of  them,  on  the  first  night  there- 
after, sought  the  watch-house  for  a  shelter  ;  others  solicited  aid  at  the 
commissioner's  office,  and  not  a  few  at  the  mayor's  residence.    Nearly 
2,000  arrive  each  week,  and  it  is  fiot  likely  that  many  months  will 
elapse  before  the  number  per  week  will  be  3,000.     In  the  Boreas, 
which  came  in  on  Saturday,  there  were  about  150  steerage  passengers. 
They  were  landed  from  a  lighter,  near  the  foot  of  Rector  street,  at  10 
a.  m.,  on  Sunday.     Some  of  them  declared  they  had  not  means  to 
obtain  one  day's  storage  for  a  chest. 

Our  streets  are  filled  with  the  wandering  crowds  of  these  passengers 


48  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

— clustering  in    our  city — unacquainted  witli   our  climate — without 
money — without  employment — without  friends — many  not  speaking 
our  language — and  without  any  dependence  for  food,  or  raiment,  or 
fireside — certain  of  nothing  but  hardship  and  a  grave ;  and  to  be 
viewed,  of  course,  with  no  very  ardent  sympathy  by  those  native  citi- 
zens whose  immediate  ancestors  were  the  saviours  of  the  country  in  its 
greatest  peril.     Besides,  many  of  them  scorn  to  hold  opinions  in  liar- 
mony  Avith  the  true  spirit  of  our  government.     They  drive  our  native 
workmen  into  exile,  where  they  must  war  again  with  the  savage  of 
the  wilderness — encounter  again  the  tomahawk  and  scalping  knife — 
and  meet  death  beyond  the  regions  of  civilization  and  of  home.     It  is 
apprehended  they  will  bring  disease  among  us  ;  and  if  they  have  it 
not  with  them  on  arrival,  tliey  may  generate  a  plague  by  collecting 
in  crowds  within  small  tenements  and  foul  hovels.    What  is  to  become 
of  them  ?  is  a  question  of  serious  import.     Our  whole  alms-house  de- 
partment is  so  full  that  no  more  can  be  received  there  without  mani- 
fest hazard  to  the  health  of  every  inmate.     Petitions  signed  by  hun- 
dreds, asking  for  work,  are  presented  in  vain.     Private  associations 
for  relief  are  almost  wholly  without  funds.     Tliousands  must  there- 
fore wander  to  and  fro  on  the  face  of  the  earth — filling  every  part  of 
our  once  happy  land  with  squalid  poverty  and  with  profligacy.  *  *  * 
By  chapter  5G,  section  16,  of  the  laws  and  ordinances  of  the  city  of 
New  York,  it  is  enacted,  that  in  all  cases  where  the  mayor  shall  deem 
it  expedient  to  commute  for  alien  passengers  arriving  at  this  port, 
instead  of  requiring  indemnity  bonds,  he  is  authorized  to  receive  such 
sum,  in  lieu  of  such  bonds,  as  he  shall  deem  adequate,  not  less  than 
one  dollar  and  not  more  than  ten  dollars,  for  each  passenger.     I  deem 
it  my  duty  to  inform  the  common  council,  that  it  is  my  intention, 
hereafter,  in  all  cases  where  it  would  not  be  unreasonable,  to  require 
and  demand  ten  dollars  for  such  commutation,  from  each  alien  pas- 
senger.    And  on  advising  with  the  commissioners  of  the  alms-house 
as  to  this  intention,  I   am  authorized  to  say  that  they  approve  and 
nnite  with  me  in  it ;  and  I  am  bound  to  believe  that  it  will  receive  the 
sanction  of  the  public.     Our  city  should   not,  whenever  it  can   be 
avoided,  receive  more  persons  likely  to  become  chargeable.     It  will  be 
a  herculean  task  to  employ  and  take  care  of  those  who  are  already 
within  our  jurisdiction.     Our  funds  appropriated  for  charitable  pur- 
poses promise  no  overplus.     Provisions,  fuel,  and  clothing  for  the 
alms-liouse,  are  still  very  expensive. 

Laborers  are  not  sought  after,  and  while  Ave  pity  the  griefs  and  sor- 
rows of  all  our  fellow-creatures,  we  cannot  deny  that  a  preference,  in 
the  distribution  of  charities,  as  well  as  place  and  employment,  is  due 
to  the  descendants  of  the  soldiers  of  the  revolution,  and  to  the  heroes 
and  sufferers  of  the  second  war  of  independence.  It  was  asked  by  the 
fathers  of  American  liberty.  It  has  been  promised  to  their  sons.  It 
cannot  be  conceded  to  aliens  Avithout  great  indignity  to  our  native 
and  adopted  citizens  ;  and  if  foreign  paupers  and  A'agrants  come  here 
for  political  purposes,  it  is  proof  irresistible  "  that  our  naturalization 
laws  ought  to  be  immediately  revised,"  and  tlie  term  of  residence 
greatly  extended  to  qualify  them  to  vote  or  hold  office.  Many  are, 
I  admit,  orderly,  Avell-disposed  men — but  many  of  them  are  of  the 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  49 

opposite  character.  It  is  believed  the  action  of  the  common  council 
in  the  premises  is  particularly  desirable.  Our  citizens  had  no  serious 
turn-outs — no  riotous  parades — no  conspiracies  against  the  business 
and  families  of  quiet,  industrious  and  honest  American  operatives, 
until  after  officious  interference  by  mischievous  strangers,  and  it  is 
melancholy  to  observe,  that,  in  the  mad  career  of  some  of  these  foreign- 
ers to  destroy  our  happy  system,  they  have  lately  recommended  to  a 
large  meeting  of  our  citizens  that  they  should  carry  with  them  deadly 
weapons,  of  various  kinds,  to  all  our  future  public  assemblages. 
These  wild  strangers  should  learn  that  to  do  so,  is  not  "peaceably" 
to  assemble,  as  provided  by  the  Constitution.  Indeed,  a  reason  for 
taking  proper  measures  to  diminish  the  number  of  ariivals  is  drawn 
from  the  fact,  that,  in  addition  to  the  great  and  grievous  expense  they 
would  add  to  the  city,  should  they  continue  to  be  numerously  thrown 
upon  us,  the  common  council  will  be  called  upon  to  provide  an  armed 
and  a  mounted  police  for  both  day  and  night  time.  Peace  cannot  be 
otherwise  expected.  Many  of  them  come  from  places  where  nothing 
less  secures  tranquilitv. 

AAROX  CLARK. 

This  message  was  referred  to  the  appropriate  committee,  which 
some  time  afterwards  made  the  following  report : 

The  committee  on  laws,  to  whom  was  referred  the  message  of  his 
honor  the  mayor^  relative  to  the  quarantine  laws  and  alien  passengers, 
beg  leave  to  report  in  part — That  its  members  have  felt  a  deep  interest 
in  the  very  important  matters  which  the  mayor  has  so  promptly,  in 
the  discharge  of  his  official  functions,  brought  before  the  notice  of  this 
board ;  that  upon  a  proper  and  discreet  settlement  of  the  interesting 
questions  submitted  in  the  communication,  depend  the  peace,  pros- 
perity, and  good  order  of  this  city. 

The  immense  numbers  of  persons  arriving  at  this  port,  fleeing  from 
the  poverty,  starvation,  and  oppression  of  Europe,  is  calculated,  cer- 
tainly, not  only  to  excite  our  sympathy  for  these  unfortunate  beings, 
but  to  create  a  well-founded  alarm  as  to  the  results  upon  our  munici- 
pal prosperity,  as  well  as  the  character  and  morality  of  our  population. 
The  greater  number  of  these  immigrants  (for  there  are  those  who, 
devoted  to  agricultural  pursuits  and  bringing  with  them  some  little 
property  and  a  good  reputation,  are  calculated  to  add  to  the  resources 
of  the  commonwealth)  are  absolutely  penniless  and  reeking  with  the 
accumulated  filth,  which  long  confinement  on  shipboard  and  an  habit- 
ual want  of  cleanliness  produce  ;  they  almost  immediately  on  their 
arrival  roam  the  streets,  a  band  of  houseless  mendicants,  or  apply  to 
your  almshouses  for  succor.  Crime  succeeds  destitution.  Your  prisons 
are  filled ;  your  hospitals  are  crowded  with  them,  and  your  public 
treasure  is  spent  upon  those  who  never  contributed  a  cent  to  the  gen- 
eral welfare. 

It  is  just,  it  is  in  accordance  with  the  best  feelings  of  the  human 
heart  to  commiserate  the  sufferings  of  humanity,  however  degraded  ; 
but,  in  the  opinion  of  your  committee,  this  city  owes  a  paramount 
duty  to  itself  and  the  country  of  which  it  is  the  general  emporium. 
She"  is  bound  bv  wise  and  efficient  laws  to  prevent  the  jails  and  work- 
H.  Rep.'  359 4 


50  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

houses  of  Europe  from  pouring  out  on  our  shores  their  felons  and 
paupers  ;  to  prohibit  lier  from  introducing  here  those  whom  she  is 
bound  by  every  consideration  of  justice  to  support ;  to  prohibit  her 
from  disgorging  on  our  people  a  population  with  principles  calculated 
to  loAver  the  tone  of  morals  and  disorganize  the  frame  of  our  repub- 
lican institutions. 

During  the  last  year  GO, 541  passengers  arrived  at  this  port.  The 
number  has  greatly  increased  this  season,  the  average  being  very 
nearly  2,000  a  week.  The  alms-house  is  full,  containing  at  this  mo- 
ment 3,074,  of  which  three-fourths  are  foreigners.  In  fact,  ou7'  pn.hUc 
cliarities  are  2Jrincipally  for  the  henefit  of  these  foreigners  ;  for,  of  1 ,209 
persons  admitted  into  the  hospital  at  Bellevue,  982  were  aliens.  The 
expense  of  the  alms-house  establishment  and  its  dependencies,  last 
year,  amounted  to  $205,506  63. 

Your  committee  therefore  recommend  the  passage  of  the  following 
resolutions : 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  0]3inion  of  this  board  that  the  mayor  may 
be  requested  to  enter  into  a  correspondence  with  the  executives  of  the 
States  of  NcAv  York  and  New  Jersey,  and  such  other  persons  as  to 
him  may  seem  proper,  touching  the  enforcement  of  the  health  laws 
and  passenger  act. 

Ersolved,  That  this  board  approve  the  decision  of  his  honor  the 
mayor  in  raising  the  amount  of  commutation  money  heretofore  paid 
bv  foreign  passengers. 

M.  C.  PATTERSON,  Chdirman. 
D.  PtANDELL. 


No.  17. 


Extract  from  a  letter  of  Mr.   Livingston  to  Mr.    Van  Buren,  dated 

August  1,  1831. 

A  letter  from  Mr.  Harrison,  a  copy  of  which  is  annexed,  informs  the 
department  that  some  law  (local  it  must  be  presumed)  in  the  island  of 
Jamaica  obliges  all  foreign  vessels,  under  a  heavy  penalty,  to  carry 
from  the  island  a  number  of  paupers  in  proportion  to  their  tonnage  ; 
and  that  this  is  daily  enforced  against  the  American  shipping.  It  is 
not  believed  that  this  abuse  can  be  countenanced.  But  you  will  make 
the  proper  representations,  and  procure  an  order  for  the  discontinu- 
ance of  the  practice,  and  compensation  to  those  who  have  suffered 
by  it. 


Mr.  Harrison  to  Mr.  Livingston. — {Extracts.) 

Consulate  of  the  United  States, 

Kingston,  Jamaica,  June  28,  1831. 

Sir  :  I  do  myself  the  honor  to  inform  you  that  I  was  called  upon 
yesterday  by  most  of  the  masters  and  supercargoes  of  American  vessels 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  61 

now  in  this  port,  who  complained  of  a  law  which  obliges  all  foreign 
vessels  under  one  hundred  tons  to  take  a.'pauper  (or  such  other  person 
that  it  may  be  desirable  to  get  rid  of)  on  board,  and  carry  him  or  them 
oflf  the  island  ;  and  those  above  that  size,  one  for  every  hundred  tons 
burden^  at  the  rate  of  $10  each,  under  a  penalty  of  £100  currency,  or 
|300. 

*  *  *  *  ^K'jf:  if:  sis 

It  appears,  when  a  pauper  wishes  to  leave  the  island,  it  is  only  ne- 
cessary to  select  the  vessel  he  is  desirous  to  go  in  ;  he  then  accompa- 
nies the  officer  charged  with  the  execution  of  the  law  in  question  to  the 
consignee,  to  whom  the  $10  is  tendered  for  the  man's  passage,  and,  if 
refused,  the  fine  is  then  inflicted.  You  are  aware  that  many  of  our 
vessels  trading  to  this  island  are  so  very  small  that  masters  and  crew 
live  together  in  the  cabin,  and,  if  they  are  not  all  related,  are  the 
sons  of  neighbors  and  friends.  It  must  therefore  be  very  disagreeable 
to  have  a  stranger  forced  among  them,  and  whom,  for  aught  they 
know,  a  very  dangerous  character  ;  whereby  not  only  the  safety  of 
the  vessel  and  property  may  be  endangered,  but  their  lives  also. 

From  the  circumstance  of  the  States  of  the  Union  having  laws 
which  prohibit  the  landing  of  paupers,  &c.,  masters  who  have  been 
compelled  to  receive  such  persons  on  board  their  vessels  at  this  place, 
have  entered  them  on  the  shipping  articles  as  seamen.  I  have  reproached 
some  who  liave  done  it  and  are  about  to  do  it  again  ;  but  they  plead 
necessity,  saying  if  they  reported  them  as  passengers  it  would  give 
them  difficulty,  and  to  avoid  which  they  are  compelled  to  use  de- 
ception. 

I  have  no  means,  while  I  remain  unauthorized  to  act  in  an  official 
character,  to  ascertain  the  number  of  persons  who  have  been  thus 
clandestinely  introduced  into  the  United  States,  but  I  am  informed 
that  there  are  now  about  one  hundred  in  the  hospital  of  Kingston  alone ^ 
and  as  there  are  scarcely  any  other  foreigners  trading  to  the  colony 
but  Americans,  the  greater  part  of  these  people  will  find  their  way  to 
the  United  States  in  the  manner  already  described  to  you.  It  is  true 
that  English  vessels  are  also  bound  to  take  away  these  unfortunate 
persons  ;  but  as  they  were  compelled  to  leave  England  for  want,  or 
improper  conduct,  it  is  not  likely  they  will  volunteer  to  return  ;  and 
I  am  tlierefore  not  wrong  in  saying  they  Avill  all  go  to  the  United 
States. 

ROBERT  3I0NR0E  HARRISON. 


Hon.  Edward  Livingston 


Secretary  of  State,  Washington. 


No.  18. 
Lord  Palmersfon  to  Mr.  Van  Buren. 

Foreign  Office 


December  21,  1831. 

The   undersigned,  his  Majesty's  princi])al  secretary  of  state  for 
foreign  affairs,  has  the  honor  to  ackyowledge  the  receipt  of  the  note 


52  FOREIGN    CRLMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

of  Mr.  Van  Biireii,  envoy  extraordinary  and  minister  plenipotentiary 
from  the  United  States  of  America  to  this  court,  dated  the  16th  in- 
stant, on  the  subject  of  an  act  in  operation  at  Kingston,  in  Jamaica, 
hy  which  the  masters  of  vessels  sailing  from  that  port  are  compelled, 
under  certain  penalties  and  conditions,  to  receive  paupers  on  hoard, 
and  to  convey  them  to  the  port  whither  the  vessel  may  be  bound. 

The  undersigned  hastens  to  inform  Mr.  Van  Buren  that  the  subject 
of  his  representation  had  already  been  brought  under  the  notice  of  his 
Majesty's  government,  through  liis  Majesty's  charge  d'affaires  at 
"Washington  ;  and  that  the  undersigned  has  had  the  satisfaction  of 
being  enabled  to  inform  the  government  of  the  United  States,  by  the 
last  packet,  that  the  act  of  the  legislature  of  Jamaica,  of  which  the 
American  government  complain,  will  expire  the  31st  December  of  the 
present  year,  and  that  instructions  will  be  transmitted  to  the  gover- 
nor of  Jamaica  to  withhold  his  assent  from  any  other  act  which  may 
be  passed  containing  the  same  or  any  similar  provision. 

The  undersigned  has  the  honor  to  renew  to  Mr.  Van  Buren  the  as- 
surances of  his  distinguished  consideration. 


O" 


PALMERSTON. 


No.  19. 
Mr.  BanhUead  to  Mr.  Livingston. 

Washington,  October  1,  1831. 

The  undersigned,  his  Britannic  Majesty's  charge  d'affaires,  has  the 
honor  to  transmit  to  Mr.  Livingston,  Secretary  of  State  of  the  United 
States,  the  copy  of  part  of  an  act  of  the  assembly  of  Jamaica,  passed 
in  February  last,  obliging  masters  of  vessels  sailing  from  that  island 
to  receive  on  board,  upon  specified  terms,  inmates  of  the  Kingston 
public  hospital  avIio  may  be  desirous  of  leaving  his  Majesty's  pos- 
sessions. 

The  undersigned  lost  no  time  in  submitting  to  his  Majesty's  gover- 
nor of  Jamaica  Mr.  Livingston's  note  of  the  26th  of  July  upon  this 
subject ;  and  he  trusts  that  the  document  which  he  now  begs  leave  to 
enclose  will  do  away  with  any  unfavorable  impression  which  may 
have  existed  as  to  the  nature  of  the  law  which  the  legislature  of 
Jamaica  have  thought  it  expedient  to  enact. 

The  undersigned  has  the  honor  to  renew  to  Mr.  Livingston  the 
assurances  of  his  distinguished  consideration. 

CHARLES  BANKHEAD. 

Copy  of  the  2dtJi  clause  of  cm  act  passed  hy  the  legislature  of  Jamaica 
on  the  2-^th  February,  1831,  entitled  '■^  An  act  for  raising  a  tax  by 
the  poll,  and  on  trades,  supercargoes  and  masters  of  vessels,  and  on 
houses,   and   on   certain  icheel- carriages  and  applying  the  same  to 

several  uses,  and  for  other  inirposes." 

• 

XXIX.  And  whereas  the  public  hospital  at  Kingston  is  supported 
at  great  expense,  and  affords  relief  to  transient  poor  persons  and  ves- 
sels of  all  countries  trading  to  t^is  island,  by  receiving  as  many  men 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  53 

from  tliem  as  are  sick  and  sent  to  it,  as  well  as  persons  who  are  left 
destitute  on  shore,  many  of  whom  remain  a  much  longer  time  a  bur- 
den on  the  public  than  is  necessary  for  their  health,  in  consequence  of 
masters  and  owners  of  vessels  demanding  excessive  or  unreasonable 
sums  of  money  for  their  passages  :  for  remedy  whereof.  Be  it  enacted 
hy  the  authority  aforesaid,  That  whenever  any  inmate  or  inmates  of 
the  Kingston  public  hospital  shall  be  desirous  of  leaving  the  island, 
and  are  to  be  provided  with  a  passage  to  any  country  at  the  public 
expense,  notice  shall  be  given  to  the  master  and  consignee  or  con- 
signees of  any  vessel  about  to  sail  for  the  port  or  place  to  which  such 
inmate  or  inmates  are  willing  to  go,  that  one  or  more  of  the  said  in- 
mates Avill  be  put  on  board  such  vessel,  but  not  to  exceed  one  for 
every  vessel  under  one  hundred  tons,  nor  to  exceed  one  for  every  one 
hundred  tons  burden  of  larger  vessels  ;  and  the  master  shall  receive 
such  inmates  on  board  his  vessel,  and  take  care  of  and  support  and 
protect  them,  and  carry  them  to  the  port  of  her  destination,  unless 
good  cause  to  the  contrary  shall  be  forthwith  shown  to  the  satisfaction 
of  the  sitting  magistrates  of  Kingston  ;  and  the  said  master  shall 
receive,  for  the  passage  and  support  of  each  inmate  put  on  board  his 
vessel  as  aforesaid,  at  the  rate  of  three  shillings  and  fourpence  per 
day,  computing  the  length  of  the  passage  fifty  days  to  Europe,  thirty 
days  to  the  British  provinces  in  North  America,  twenty  days  to  Ber- 
muda and  the  United  States  of  America  north  of  Saint  Augustine 
and  all  places  to  the  eastward  of  St.  Domingo,  twelve  days  to  New 
Orleans,  ten  days  to  all  other  foreign  places  to  the  southward  of  Pen- 
sacola,  and  five  days  to  any  place  in  this  island  ;  and  if  the  master  of 
any  vessel,  to  whom  notice  has  been  given  as  aforesaid,  shall  refuse  to 
receive  on  board  his  vessel  any  inmates  from  the  public  hospital,  or 
shall  not  carry  them  to  the  port  of  her  destination,  he  and  the  con- 
signee or  consignees  of  his  vessel  shall  be  liable  to  a  fine  of  fifty 
pounds  for  each  inmate  so  left  behind,  which  shall  be  recovered  in  a 
summary  manner  before  any  two  justices  of  the  peace. 

Vera  copia  :  W.  G.  STEWART, 

Secretary  and  Notary  Public. 


No.  20. 
Extract  of  a  letter  from  Mr.  Livingston  to  Mr.  BanJchead,  dated 

October  4,  1831. 

Sir  :  I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  note  of 
the  1st  instant,  by  which  you  transmit  to  me  the  copy  of  a  part  of  an 
act  of  the  assembly  of  Jamaica,  passed  in  February  last,  obliging, 
under  heavy  penalties,  the  masters  of  vessels  about  to  sail  from  the 
island  to  take  on  board  and  convey  to  the  ports  of  their  destination  all 
such  paupers  as  are  willing  to  leave  the  island,  and  are  to  be  provided 
with  a  passage  at  the  public  expense. 

This  act  is  so  obviously  injurious  in  its  operation  upon  the  United 


54  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

States,  by  forcing  their  ships  to  convey  to  tins  country  any  pauper 
who  chooses  to  burden  it  with  his  support,  that  it  is  believed  the  as- 
sembly of  Jamaica  will^  on  a  proper  representation,  repeal  a  law  which 
is  intended  to  disgorge  all  the  inhabitants  of  its  hospitals  and  poor- 
houses  upon  foreign  countries,  who  may  not  be  willing  to  receive  them. 
It  also  imposes  an  individual  hardship  on  the  master  or  owner  of  the 
vessel,  who  is  obliged  by  the  State  laws,  in  most  or  all  our  ports,  to 
find  security  that  the  passengers  he  brings  shall  not  become  charge- 
able to  the  parish.  While  I  hope  that  your  rei)resentation  may  induce 
the  assembly  to  rej)eal  so  unjust  a  law,  I  must,  in  the  meantime,  send 
a  copy  of  the  act  to  our  minister  at  the  court  of  his  Britannic  Majesty, 
with  instructions  to  ask  the  interference  of  his  Majesty's  government 
in  the  case. 


3L\  Banhliead  to  Mr.  Livingston. 

Washington,  February  15,  1832. 

The  undersigned,  his  Britannic  Majesty's  charge  d'affaires,  has  the 
honor  to  acquaint  the  Secretary  of  State  .of  the  United  States,  in  refer- 
ence to  the  correspondence  which  has  taken  place  upon  the  subject, 
that  instructions  have  been  transmitted  by  the  department  of  the  col- 
onies to  his  Majesty's  governor  of  Jamaica  to  withhold  his  assent  from 
the  renewal  of  any  act  proposed  by  the  legislature  of  that  island,  of 
the  nature  of  that  which  expired  on  the  31st  of  December  last,  com- 
pelling masters  of  merchant  vessels  to  receive  on  board  paupers  of  the 
Kingston  public  hospital,  and  to  carry  them  to  the  port  to  which  the 
vessel  may  be  bound. 

The  undersigned  has  the  honor  to  renew  to  Mr.  Livingston  the  as- 
surance of  his  most  distinguished  consideration. 

CHAKLES  BANKHEAD. 


3[r.  Bankhead  to  Mr.  Livingston. 

Washington,  October  3,  1832. 

The  undersigned,  his  Britannic  Majesty's  charge  d'affaires,  has  the 
honor  to  refer  the  Secretary  of  State  of  the  United  States  to  the  cor- 
respondence which  has  taken  place  respecting  the  clause  inserted  in  a 
law  of  the  legislature  of  Jamaica,  compelling  the  masters  of  vessels 
trading  to  that  island  from  the  United  States  to  receive  paupers  on 
board,  and  to  convey  them  to  the  ports  to  which  the  vessels  might  be 
bound. 

The  undersigned  has  received  instructions  from  his  Majesty's  gov- 
ernment to  acquaint  the  Secretary  of  State  that  the  clause  in  question 
was  not  intended  to  produce  the  effect  of  which  the  government  of  the 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAfPERS.  65 

United  States  complained ;  and  that,  in  consequence  of  the  proceedings 
which  have  been  instituted  by  the  governor  of  Jamaica,  it  has  now 
ceased  to  be  a  hiw. 

The  undersigned  has  the  honor  to  renew  to  Mr.  Livingston  the  assu- 
rances of  his  most  distinguished  consideration. 

CHARLES  BANDHEAD. 

Hon.  E.  Livingston,  cf-c. 


Xo.   2L 


Consulate  of  the  United  States  of  America, 

Leipsic,  March  8,  1837. 

Sir  :  On  your  circular  letter  of  July  T,  1836,  I  have  made  inquiries 
in  respect  to  the  transport  of  paupers  from  this  country  to  the  United 
States  ;  but  state  affairs  being  in  this  country  not  so  openly  conducted 
as  might  be  desired,  I  have  not  been  successful,  until  of  late,  when, 
by  confidential  communications,  I  have  learned  things  which  will  re- 
quire energetic  measures  upon  the  part  of  the  United  States  to  be 
counteracted. 

Not  only  pauj^ers,  but  even  criminals,  are  transported  from  the  in- 
terior of  this  country  to  the  seaports,  in  order  to  be  embarked  there 
for  the  L^nited  States. 

A  Mr.  De  Stein,  formerly  an  officer  in  the  service  of  the  Duke  of 
Saxe  Gotha,  has  lately  made  propositions  to  the  smaller  States  of 
Saxony  for  transj^orting  their  criminals  to  the  port  of  Bremen,  and 
embarking  them  there  for  the  L^nited  States,  at  $75  a  head ;  which 
offer  has  been  accepted  by  several  of  them.  The  first  transport  of 
criminals,  who,  for  the  greater  part,  have  been  condemned  to  hard 
labor  for  life,  (among  them  two  notorious  robbers,  Pfeifer,  and  Al- 
brecht,)  will  leave  Gotha  on  the  15th  of  this  month  ;  and  it  is  in- 
tended to  empty,  by  and  by,  all  the  workhouses  and  jails  of  that 
country  in  this  manner.  There  is  little  doubt  that  several  other 
states  will  imitate  that  nefarious  practice.  In  order  to  stop  it,  I  have 
sent  an  article  into  the  General  Gazette  of  Augsburg,  Avherein  I  have 
attempted  to  demonstrate  that  this  behavior  was  contrary  to  all  laws 
of  nations,  and  that  it  was  a  shameful  behavior  towards  a  country 
which  oflers  the  best  market  to  German  manufactures. 

It  has  of  late  also  become  a  general  practice  in  the  towns  and  bo- 
roughs of  Germany  to  get  rid  of  their  paupers  and  vicious  members, 
by  collecting  means  for  effectuating  their  passage  to  the  United  States 
among  the  inhabitants,  and  by  supporting  them  from  the  public  funds. 

This  practice  is  highly  injurious  to  the  United  States,  as  it  burdens 
them  with  a  host  of  paupers  and  criminals,  and  also  deters  the  better 
and  wealthier  class  of  the  inhabitants  of  this  country  from  immigrat- 
ing to  the  United  States.  The  property  the  latter  class  has  of  late 
exported  annually  to  the  United  States  has  been  calculated  at  a  sum 
of  from  two  to  four  millions  of  dollars,  and  it  is  to  be  expected  that 
this  very  profitable  immigration  would  increase  from  year  to  year,  in 


56  rOREICtN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

case  the  honest  people  of  this  country  would  not  have  to  fear  to  be  as- 
sociated in  the  new  country  with  the  worst  class  of  their  countrymen. 
This,  indeed,  seems  to  be  the  secret  motive  of  the  above-mentioned 
measures.  It  is  intended  to  stigmatize  thereby  that  country  which 
the  wealthier  class  of  the  farmers  and  mechanics  commence  to  consider 
as  the  land  of  promise. 

To  remedy  that  evil,  I  would  propose  the  following  measures: 
1.  That  all  persons  intending  to  immigrate  to  the  United  States, 
would  have  to  produce  to  the  consul  of  the  United  States,  in  the  sea- 
port, a  testimonial  from  the  magistrate  of  their  residence,  purporting 
that  they  have  not  been  punished  for  a  crime,  (political  punishments 
excepted)  for  the  last  three  years  ;  that  they  are  able  to  maintain 
themselves  by  their  labor  or  capital.  2.  That  the  consul  of  the 
United  States,  in  the  sea-port,  should  have  to  certify  these  testimo- 
nials ;  and  that  the  masters  of  ships,  who  Avould  take  a  passenger 
without  such  a  testimonial,  should  have  to  pay  a  considerable  fine  on 
landing  him  in  the  United  States.  3.  That  the  consul  of  the  United 
States,  in  the  sea-port,  should  have  power  to  refuse  his  certificate  to 
all  those  immigrants  who,  in  his  opinion,  would  become  a  burden  to 
the  community  on  their  arrival  in  the  United  States. 

I  am,  sir,  with  high  consideration,  your  most  obedient  and  humble 
servant, 

F.  LIST. 

Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


No.  22. 


Consulate  of  the  United  States, 
District  of  Kingston-upon-Hull,  Leeds,  August  30,  1836. 

Sir:  *  *  *  *  *  *     Theofiicersof 

the  customs  are  well  aware  that  paupers  do  proceed  both  to  the  United 
States  and  Canada,  and  it  has  been  admitted  by  the  owners  of  several 
vessels  sailing  there  that  their  passages  are  paid  by  the  overseers  of  the 
parishes  to  which  they  belong.  The  mode  of  doing  this  varies  ac- 
cording to  the  trustworthiness  of  the  pauper.  If  good,  he  is  trusted 
to  make  his  own  bargain,  and  generally  has  a  trifle  of  money  advanced 
to  him  for  use  when  he  quits  the  vessel  to  enable  him  to  get  up  the 
country.  If  the  man  is  a  bad  character,  he  is  generally  the  best  off", 
as  the  overseers  pay  his  passage  mone)',  and  procure  for  him  the 
necessaries  for  his  voyage ;  the  man  thus  turns  restive,  and  oftentimes 
refuses  to  go  unless  more  money  is  given  him,  generally  £5  or  £10 
more  than  was  first  agreed  on ;  so  that  the  worse  the  character,  the 
better  able  the  pauper  is  to  make  his  way  when  he  quits  the  vessel. 
One  ship-owner,  Avhose  vessel  sailed  this  year  to  the  United  States 
from  Hull,  and  who  has  had  several  previously,  says  he  believes  that 
nearly  all  the  passengers  go  to  the  back  settlements  to  their  friends, 
who  had  previously  gone  there,  and  had  written  for  them,  and  that  it 
very  rarely  happened  that  any  family  went  out  on  a  roving  expedition 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  57 

not  having  an  object.  It  appears  that  the  greatest  emigration  from 
Hull  is  to  Canada,  whither  passage  money  is  reduced.  And  many 
instances  have  been  discovered  where  the  overseers  have  agreed  with 
the  paupers,  and  paid  their  passage  money  for  the  United  States ;  hut 
the  paupers  have  adopted  the  plan  of  getting  there  through  Canada, 
on  account  of  the  moderate  charge  of  tlie  passage;  by  which  means 
they  have  taken  more  money  with  them  into  the  country. 

It  is  the  general  oi)inion  of  the  owners  of  vessels  that  during  the 
last  two  years  the  number  of  paupers  immigrating  to  the  United  States 
and  Canada  has  been  very  much  diminished.  Very  few  have  gone 
there  from  this  large  county,  (Yorkshire,)  as  labor  has  been  easily 
obtained,  and  wages  have  improved. 

A  merchant  who  had  a  vessel  sailed  from  the  port  of  Hull  this  year 
with  several  families  states  that  all  but  three  appeared  able  to  bear 
their  own  expenses,  and  some,  though  in  appearance  poor,  loere  known 
to  have  in  their  possession  considerable  property.  Another  counter- 
acting effect  of  the  immigration  of  paupers  is  the  return  of  several 
within  the  last  year  or  two  to  their  parishes,  which  are  bound  to  re- 
ceive them,  and  the  knowledge  of  such  proceedings  deters  other  over- 
seers from  being  so  ready  to  assist  as  they  were  some  years  ago. 
Liverpool  being  the  principal  port  from  whence  immigration  takes 
place,  I  beg  to  enclose  you  herewith  a  statement  (A)  that  has  been 
published  of  the  number  Avho  have  sailed  from  the  1st  January  to  the 
5th  July  last,  designating  the  countries  to  which  they  have  gone^  and 
the  number  for  the  years  1833,  1834,  and  1835. 

A  society  was  formed  some  time  since  for  the  purpose  of  sending 
young  females  out  to  New  South  Wales,  but,  as  will  be  perceived  by 
the  enclosed  resolution  (B)  passed  by  them,  they  now  decline  recom- 
mending any  further  immigration  there,  owing  to  the  excessive  im- 
morality stated  to  prevail  there. 

With  great  respect,  I  am,  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

ALBERT  DAVY, 
Consul  TJ.  S.  A.,  King ston-upon- Hull. 
Hon.  Levi  Woodbury, 

Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Washington. 


68  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

No.   23. 

FOREiaN  PAUPERS  AND  NATURALIZATION  LAWS. 

[To  accompaiiT  Bills  11.  R.  873  and  874.] 


July  2,  1838. 


Mr.  Russell,  from  tlie  select  committee  api)oiiited  on  the  subject,  made 

the  following  report : 

The  select  committee  to  whicJi  loere  referred  the  memorial  of  the  mayor, 
aldermen,  and  commoncdty  of  the  city  of  New  York,  the  memorials  of 
the  inhcdntants  of  the  counties  of  Washington,  Kings,  and  several  others 
in  the  State  of  New  York,  that  of  the  municipal  government  in  the  city 
of  Boston,  that  of  citizens  of  Sutton,  that  of  citizens  of  3Iilbnry,  in  the 
State  of  3Iassacliusetts,  and  thcd  of  the  ''Ncdive  American  Associa- 
tion," in  the  city  of  Washington,  in  the  District  of  Columhia,  and 
severed  others  from  different  States,  jyvaying  a  repeal  of  the  natural- 
ization laios  of  the  United  States,  or  such  an  alteration  thereof  as  shall 
extend  the  time  of  residence  in  the  United  States  of  foreigners,  previous 
to  their  being  admitted  to  the  exercise  of  p)olitical  rights,  beyond  the 
period  which  is  required  by  the  existing  laics;  and  also  p>raying  the 
ptassage  of  a  law  which  ivill  eff^ectually  prevent  the  introduction  of  p>aic- 
p>ers  and  convicts  from  foreign  countries  into  the  United  Stcdes;  also, 
the  remonstrance  of  a  number  of  German  citizens,  living  in  the  southern- 
part  of  the  State  of  Missouri,  against  granting  the  ptayer  of  the  memo- 
rialists, respectfully  report : 

The  memorialists  allege  that  the  number  of  emigrants  from  foreign 
countries  into  the  United  States  is  increasing  with  such  rapidity  as  to 
jeopardize  the  peace  and  tranquillity  of  our  citizens,  if  not  the  perma- 
nency of  the  civil,  religious,  and  political  institutions  of  the  United 
State'^s.     [That  many  of  "them  are  the  outcasts  of  foreign  countries ;  2^ciu- 
pers,  vagrants,  and  malefactors,  from  the  poor-houses  and  penitentia- 
ries of  Europe,  sent  hither  at  the  expense  of  foreign  governments,  to 
relieve  them  from  the  burden  of  their  maintenance.     That,  from  the 
destitute  condition  of  this  class  when  they  arrive  in  this  country,  they 
immediately  become  burdensome  to  our  citizens,  exhausting  the  accu- 
mulated funds  which  had  been  raised,  and  were  being  disbursed,  by 
the  various  charitable  institutions  in  our  country,  for  the  use  of  our 
own  unfortunate  and  destitute  citizens.     Among  those  who  have  been 
sent  hither,  are  many  laboring  under  the  infirmaties  of   old  age, 
whose  days  of  usefulness  and  vigor  have  been  spent  in  England  or 
upon  the  continent  of  Europe  :  and,  when  they  can  be  no  longer  use- 
ful in  their  native  country,  are  sent  among  us,  entirely  destitute,  to 
linger  out  a  friendless  and  burdensome  existence  in  a  strange  land. 
Others,   equally  helpless  and  burdensome  from  natual   infirmities, 
bearing  unquestionable  indications  of  their  having  been  paupers  in 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  59 

their  native  land.     Others,  and  not  a  few,  hihoring  under  mental 
aberration,  evidently  of  long  standing  and  incurable.     Others,  idiots; 
and  there  is  hardly  anj^  degree  of  mental  infirmity  which  affects  man- 
kind, and  which  is  as  various  as  the  shades  of  human  character,  inter- 
mediate, mere  eccentricity  and  absolute  phrensy,  which  may  not  be 
found  among  these  thus  cast  upon  our  country.     Others,  Avhose  resi- 
dence among  us  is  still  more  objectionable,  are  convicts  from  the 
European  States,  condemned  to  imprisonment  in  their  native  country 
for  aggravated  offences  against  their  laws,  and  released  from  impri- 
sonment only  on  condition  of  taking  up  their  residence  in  this  western 
hemisphere.     It  is  the  concentration  of  these  classes  of  foreigners  in 
the  United  States,  from  various  foreign  countries,  which  has  drawn 
forth  these  simultaneous  appeals  to  Congress,  from  the  different  sec- 
tions of  the  Union,  to  save  our  country  and  our  citizens  from  the 
blighting  influence  of  such  a  population,   and  more  especially  the 
laboring  class.     An  American  laborer  is  among  the  most  useful  of  our 
citizens ;  and  the  primeval  principle  which  was  proclaimed  to  man^ 
that  he  should  ^'earn  his  bread  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow,"  he  ac- 
knowledges as  a  rule  of  duty,  prescribing  a  reasonable  service,  from 
which  neither  habit  nor  inclination  prompts  him  to  depart ;  his  pride 
and  ambition  are  stimulated  by  a  desire  to  attain  independence,  and 
to  maintain  his  family  with  the  fruits  of  his  own  labor,  and,  in  the 
vigor  of  manhood,  to  accumulate  a  treasure  which  will  smooth  the 
pathway  of  his  declining  years,  and  alleviate  the  sorrows  incident  to 
old  age.     Whatever  causes  may  conspire  in  the  European  States  to 
produce  pauperism,  few  exist  here  ;  and  it  is  believed  to  be  not  only 
unreasonable,  but  unjust,  to  permit  foreign  governments  to  relieve 
themselves  from  the  maintenance  of  their  own  poor,  which  is  caused 
principally  by  their  forms  of  government,  their  policy,  and  their  laws, 
at  the  expense  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States.     Their  collision 
•with  our  citizens  in  the  various  pursuits  of  private  life,  their  disregard 
of  those  social,  moral,  and  political  obligations  which  control  the  ac- 
tion of  the  American  people,  and  attach  them  to  the  homes  of  their 
fathers,  render  them  obnoxious  to  suspicion  and  distrust,  and  unwel- 
come associates  in  their  daily  toil.     It  is  estimated  that  there  are 
about  one  hundred  and  forty-six  thousand  foreigners  who  annually 
arrive  in  the  United  States  ;  many  of  them  entirely  destitute  of  the 
necessaries  of  life,  and  depending  for  daily  subsistence  upon  public  or 
private  charity. 

There  is  probably  a  pauper  population  in  the  United  States  of  about 
105,000  who  are^supported  at  public  expense  ;  and  it  is  estimated  that 
more  than  one-half  the  number  (and  these  the  most  helpless  and  ex- 
pensive) are  foreigners.  On  the  12th  of  June,  1837,  there  were  in  the 
almshouse,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  3,074,  of  which  number  three- 
fourths  were  foreigners;  and  of  1,200  admitted  into  the  almshouse  at 
Bellevue,  982  were  aliens  ;  and  during  the  year  preceding  the  29th 
March,  1837,  there  had  been  supported  or  relieved  at  these  establish- 
ments, 6,874  foreigners.  On  the  1st  of  May,  1837,  there  were  in 
Bellevue  almshouse  690  men  and  747  women ;  and  by  the  report  of 
the  resident  physician  of  the  hospital,  it  appears  that  of  1,209  which 
were  admitted  into  his  department  during  the  year  ending  the  1st  of 


60  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

January,  1837;,  502  were  received  into  the  maniac  department;  and 
that  of  the  whole  number  only  206  were  born  in  America.  In  1836, 
there  were  in  the  almshouse  at  Boston,  Massachusetts,  596  Americans 
and  673  foreigners;  and  in  that  of  Philadelphia,  1,505  Americans 
and  1,266  foreigners.  The  average  expense  of  supporting  a  pauper 
in  the  United  States  is  estimated  at  about  $42  a  year.  If  the  estimate 
of  numbers  and  the  expense  of  their  maintenance  be  correct,  it  will^t 
be  seen  that  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  are  paying  annually, 
for  the  support  of  their  pauper  population,  $4,400,000,  one-half  of 
which,  at  least,  is  paid  to  support  foreign  paupers;  or,  in  other  words, 
the  citizens  of  the  United  States  are  contributing  annually  $2,200,000 
to  relieve  foreign  governments  from  the  supjiort  of  their  own  poor. 

In  a  communication  to  the  common  council  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
the  late  mayor,  in  relation  to  this  foreign  population,  remarks  that 
"our  streets  are  filled  with  these  wandering  crowds,  clustering  in  our 
city,  unaccustomed  to  our  climate,  without  money,  without  employ- 
ment, without  friends,  many  not  speaking  our  language,  and  without 
any  dependence  for  food,  or  raiment,  or  fireside.  What  is  to  become 
of  them?  is  a  question  of  serious  import:  our  whole  almshouse  depart- 
ment is  so  full  that  no  more  can  be  received  without  manifest  hazard 
to  the  health  of  the  inmates;  petitions  signed  by  hundreds,  asking  for 
work,  are  presented  in  vain;  private  associations  for  relief  are  almost 
wholly  without  funds;  thousands  must  therefore  wander  to  and  fro, 
filling  every  part  of  our  hapj)y  land  with  squalid  poverty  and  profli- 
gacy." 

The  tax  for  the  support  of  paupers  in  that  city  has  more  than  doubled 
in  seven  years  ;  and  this  remarkable  coincidence  will  be  found,  that, 
in  the  same  jjeriod  of  time,  the  foreign  population  of  the  city  will  have 
a  fraction  more  than  doubled.  From  this  it  is  evident  that,  in  pro- 
portion to  emigration  from  foreign  countries,  pauperism  is  increased 
in  nearly  an  equal  degree  with  population  from  abroad. 

The  population  in  the  city  of  Washington,  in  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia is  22,000.  During  the  five  preceding  years  there  were  975 
paupers  admitted  into  the  infirmary  in  the  city  of  Washington,  and 
1,385  committed  for  disorderly  conduct.  The  average  number  of 
paupers  per  year  is  195,  and  the  average  number  of  vagrants  for  the 
same  period  is  277,  making  an  aggregate  of  paupers  and  vagrants  of 
472,  or  one  pauper  and  vagrant  to  every  46  inhabitants. 

The  number  of  resident  papers  for  the  last  ten  years  was  2,125,  and 
of  foreign  alien  paupers  1,120,  and  paupers  from  diflerent  States  934, 
constituting  an  aggregate  for  ten  years  of  4,179.  0*it  of  168  paupers 
admitted  to  the  poor-house  proper,  in  the  city  of  Washington,  in  1837, 
70  Avere  foreigners.  From  May,  1837,  to  February,  1838,  118  were 
admitted;  and  of  the  white  males  admitted,  about  two-thirds  were 
foreigners.  In  1832,  the  expenditure  for  the  support  of  the  poor,  in- 
firm, and  lunatics  in  the  city  was  $3,775;  and  the  committee  have 
the  most  authentic  information  that  more  than  one-ninth  of  the  re- 
ceipts for  taxes  on  real  and  personal  property  in  this  city  has  been  im- 
posed for  the  support  of  paupers.  From  these  facts  it  appears  that 
the  inhabitants  of  the  city  are  paying,  on  an  average,  for  the  support 
of  paupers  and  vagrants  from  abroad,  $2^245  annually.     This  result. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  61 

however,  is  produced  upon  the  hypothesis  that  only  one-half  are  for- 
eigners, when  the  prohability  is  that  a  much  greater  proportion  are 
from  ahroad. 

In  a  memorial  recently  presented  to  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  the 
city  of  New  York,  it  is  stated  that  during  the  last  seven  years  296,259 
foreigners  arrived  at  the  port  of  New  York.  In  1835,  the  whole  ' 
population  in  the  city  of  New  York  Avas  270,089.  Thus,  it  will  be 
seen  that,  in  the  short  period  of  seven  years,  the  number  of  foreign- 
ers who  congregated  in  the  city  of  Ncav  York  was  26,170  more  tlian 
the  whole  population  which  that  city  contained  in  1835. 

In  the  memorial  it  is  also  stated  that  "on  the  1st  of  January,  1837, 
982  foreigners  and  227  native  American  citizens  had  been  admitted 
to  the  hospital  at  Bellevue  the  preceding  year.  On  the  1st  of  jilay 
last,  there  were  in  the  almshouse  1,437  paupers.  Allowing  the  same 
proportion  of  foreigners  as  in  the  hospital,  and  there  would  be  1,068 
foreigners  and  369  native  citizens  in  the  almshouse, 

"It  appears  from  tlie  report  of  a  committee  monthly  appointed  by 
the  board  of  aldermen  of  this  city,  that  there  were,  at  the  date  of 
that  report,  3,070  paupers  in  the  almshouse,  more  than  three-fourths 
of  whom  are  foreigners.  How  many  more  of  this  class  live  upon  pri- 
vate charities,  let  the  swarm  of  mendicants  Avho  daily  and  nightly 
infest  our  streets  attest." 

At  a  recent  date,  it  appears  that  the  number  of  convicts  confined  at 
Sing  Sing,  New  York,  was  800,  of  whom  603  were  foreigners. 

In  the  year  ending  in  August,  1836,  there  were  received  into  the 
Boston  House  of  Refuge  8(jb  paupers,  516  of  whom  were  foreigners. 
From  the  1st  of  January  to  the  25th  of  April,  1837,  there  were  264 
paupers  admitted  to  the  same  House  of  Eefuge,  160  of  whom  were 
aliens.  "  It  must  be  born  in  mind  [says  this  report]  that  those  for- 
eigners only  who  arrive  in  vessels  of  forty  tons  burden  and  upwards 
are  registered  and  taken  into  the  account  above  stated.  There  are 
hundreds,  nay  thousands,  who  come  in  vessels  of  less  size,  and  by  the 
way  of  the  Canadas.  It  is  confidently  believed  that  the  whole  num- 
ber of  foreign  emigrants  who  have  arrived  in  this  city  since  1830^ 
amounts  to  more  than  500,000." 

In  1807,  the  foreign  population  in  the  United  States  bore  a  propor- 
tion to  the  native  of  about  one  to  forty  ;  now  the  proportion  is  about 
one  to  nineteen. 

This  unnatural  increase  of  population,  combining  in  social  inter- 
course strangers  possessing  different  habits,  speaking  different  lan- 
guages, many  of  them  unable  to  either  read  or  write,  not  capable  of 
duly  appreciating  their  own  rights,  or  their  obligations  to  the  muni- 
cipal regulations  of  the  country  which  protects  them,  with  habits 
established  for  duplicity,  idleness,  and  crime,  would  naturally,  if  not 
necessarily,  produce  interruption  to  that  unity  and  peaceful  inter- 
change of  kind  offices  which  so  peculiarly  characterize  the  American 
people. 

In  an  address  recently  presented  to  the  mayor  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
it  is  stated,  ' '  The  extent  of  the  influx  of  foreigners  of  the  lower  classes 
seems  not  to  be  fully  understood.  There  are  at  least,  from  England 
and  Ireland  alone,  more  than  a  hundred  and  twenty-thousand  emi- 
grants who  yearly  reach    our  shores  by  direct  or    indirect  courses 


62  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

Sixtv-five  thousand  emigrants  came  directly  to  New  York  and  its 
neigliborhood  last  year ;  and  as  many  reached  the  States  north  of  the 
Potomac,  in  the  same  space  of  time,  in  some  way  or  another.  -This  is 
a  moderate  calculation.  The  Encyclopedia  Americana,  a  translation 
and  enlargement,  of  the  German  Conversations  Lexicon,  edited  by  a 
foreigner,  states,  that  from  thirty-five  thousand  to  five  hundred  thou- 
sand emigrants  arrive  in  this  country  (meaning  the  Canadas  and  the 
United  States)  every  year.  But  few  of  tliem,  it  is  Avell  known,  stay 
in  Canada;  they  prefer  our  government  to  the  colonial.  This  state- 
ment is  corroborated  by  the  London  Encyclopedia,  which  urges  the 
British  government  to  send  out  a  million  of  emigrants  a  year,  until 
a  proper  depletion  is  made  of  the  swollen  body  of  their  population, 
and  reckons  up  the  cost,  making  it  over  five  pounds  sterling  a  head, 
which  is  double  the  amount  they  pay  for  landing  the  inmates  of  their 
almshouses  and  jails  at  the  present  time.  They  now  pay  about  jfive 
dollars  a  head  for  passage  money,  and  their  provisions  costs  about  ten 
dollars  each." 

The  consequence  of  such  an  amalgamation  must  be  dissatisfaction, 
if  not  violence,  and  extensive  violation  of  personal  rights  ;  these  pro- 
duce litigation,  criminal  prosecutions,  and  consequently  large  dis- 
bursements of  the  public  money.  An  examination  (especially  in  the 
towns  where  this  foreign  population  assemble)  of  the  calendar  of  crim- 
inal prosecutions,  will  show  the  alarming  extent  of  this  evil.  If,  in 
a  time  of  peace  and  tranquility,  such  consequences  flow  from  ming- 
lino-  in  our  communitv  such  discordant  materials,  what  securitv  can 
there  be  in  a  state  of  war,  when  concert  and  co-operation  become  es- 
sential to  national  security? 

The  mayor  of  the  city  of  New  York  communicated  his  annual  mes- 
sasre  to  the  common  council  of  that  citv  on  the  14th  of  Mav,  1838, 
from  which  the  following  extracts  are  taken  :  "  Your  early  and  most 
serious  examination  of  our  entire  paujjer  system,  including  the  con- 
templated removal  of  the  almshouse  to  Blaekwell's  island  or  to  Ran- 
dall's island,  and  the  establishment  of  a  workhouse,  is  daily  becoming 
necessary.  It  is  believed  that,  by  a  laborious  investigation,  and  upon 
consequent  new  arrangements  of  the  various  departments,  the  enor- 
mous expenses  may  be  diminished,  or  at  least  prevented  from  being 
increased,  except  in  a  few  absolutely  unavoidable  cases. 

If  the  addition  of  numbers  and  cost  of  maintenance,  are  to  go  on 
progressively,  as  may  be  learned  from  the  following  particulars  has 
thus  far  been  the  case,  many  years  Avill  not  elapse  before  they  will 
become  a  burden  greater  than  the  tax-payers  will  submit  to.  By  a 
report  from  tlie  commissioners,  it  appears  that  the  number  of  inmates 
in  the  almshouse,  including  the  hospitals  and  Long  Island  iarms,  on 
the  8th  of  September,  1837,  was  -  -         '   -  -  2,548 

Number  in  the  bridewell  _  _  _  _  132 

Number  in  the  penitentiary       -  _  _  -  052 


Making  a  total  of     -  -  -  3,332 


Foreig^ners  _  -  _  _  _  2.045 

Native  Americans  -  -  _  -  1,287 


3.332 


- 

1,833 

91 

403 

2,327 

1,158 
1,169 

2,327 

- 

3,332 

2,327 

- 

1,005 

887 
118 

1  OO'^ 

FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  63 

A  similar  statement  of  lOtli  September,  1836,  is  added,  in  order  to 
exhibit  the  increase  for  one  year,  and  to  show  that  eigldy-eiglit  per 
cent,  of  that  increase  are  foreigners. 

Number  of  inmates  in  almshouses,  &c. 

Number  of  inmates  in  bridewell 

Number  of  inmates  in  penitentiary 


Of  these  there  were  foreigners 

native  Americans 


Total  number  8th  September,  1837,  as  above 
Total  number  10th  September,  1836 

Increase  in  one  year 

Of  this  number,  there  are  foreigners 

And  native  Americans  _  _  _ 


In  giving  these  items,  the  commissioners  subjoin  the  following  : 

'■  This  exhibit,  it  is  believed,  justifies  the  demand  for  increased 
commutation  fees_,  and  points  to  the  necessity  of  enforcing  all  laws 
touching  the  emigration  of  foreign  emigrants.  It  is  noticed  also  that 
a  considerable  portion  of  the  children  classed  as  natives,  are  born  of 
foreign  parents  shortly  after  their  arrival  here." 

On  the  8th  of  May  instant  the  number  of  persons  in  the  almshouse 
alone  was  1,342;  of  these  719  were  foreigners;  in  the  hospital,  also, 
135  persons,  of  whom  105  were  foreigners ;  in  the  lunatic  hall,  179, 
of  whom  110  were  foreigners;  of  the  713  children  on  the  Long  Island 
farms,  273  are  of  foreign  birth;  the  number  in  bridewell  134,  and  73 
of  them  foreigners ;  in  the  penitentiary,  621  })ersons,  of  which  number 
326  are  foreigners — making  a  total  of  3,367:  foreigners,  1,606.  And 
it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  large  amounts  of  fuel,  provisions,  and 
money  are  distributed  annually  by  the  commissioners  to  the  poor  and 
the  needy  who  remain  at  their  homes.  And  were  it  not  for  the  pov- 
erty of  the  times  we  should  feel  much  surprised  that  the  almshouse. 
should  contain  so  many  inmates  when  we  recollect  that  our  humane 
and  benevolent  inhabitants  also  collect  and  distribute  very  large 
amounts  within  the  abodes  of  poverty  and  suifering ;  that  there  are, 
moreover,  an  extensive  city  hospital,  lunatic  asylum,  a  seamen's  re- 
treat_,  sailor's  snug  harbor,  and  nearly  twenty  other  institutions  for 
the  cure  of  the  sick,  and  for  the  relief  of  the  j)oor,  the  aged,  the  blind, 
the  deaf,  the  orphan,  tlie  juvenile  delinquent,  and  for  the  ameliora- 
tion of  suffering  and  misfortune  of  every  denomination. 

The  arrivals  into  the  city  of  New  York  of  foreign  emigrants  in  the 
eight  years  preceding  1837  have  been  fourfold.  Those  from  Cork  alone 
in  1836  were  4,993;  and  from  the  returns  of  the  State  Department, 
under  the  law  of  2d  March,  1819,  it  appears  that  from  the  1st  Jan- 
uary to  the  27th  July,  1837,  the  increase  at  the  port  of  New  York  of 


64  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

foreigners  over  that  of  the  preceding  year  was  in  the  ratio  of  four  to 
one. 

The  amount  expended  in  the  State  of  New  York  in  the  year  1836 
for  support  of  the  j)oor  is  stated  to  have  been  $396,100  05  ;  and  during 
the  same  period  the  State  received  for  tolls  on  the  Cham2)lain  canal, 
which  is  the  most  productive  in  the  State  except  one,  the  sum  of  about 
$132,000,  If  one-half  of  tlie  expense  of  sui)porting  the  poor  in  that 
year  was  paid  for  the  support  of  foreign  poor,  of  which  the  committee 
entertain  no  doubt,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  receipts^from  the  Cham- 
plain  canal  for  one  year  and  a  half  have  been  insufficient  to  maintain 
the  foreign  poor  in  that  State  for  a  single  year;  or,  in  other  words,  we 
are  giving  the  entire  avails  of  that  splendid  improvement,  and,  in 
addition  thereto,  sixty-six  thousand  dollars  a  year^  to  relieve  foreign 
governments  from  the  maintenance  of  their  own  poor. 

The  evidence  of  the  wisdom  of  the  American  people,  if  not  their 
jiride,  is  to  be  found  in  their  naval  armament,  which  costs  them  an- 
nually something  over  tive  millions  of  dollars,  and  we  are  paying 
within  half  a  million  of  that  amount  for  the  support  of  our  poor,  and 
one-half  of  them  at  least  foreigners. 

In  1837  there  were  taught  in  the  common  schools  in  the  State  of 
Pennsylvania  139,604  scholars,  exclusive  of  11,234  taught  in  Phila- 
delphia, at  an  expense  of  $132,000  in  both  places.  It  is  estimated 
that  there  are  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  above  1,515  foreign  paupers, 
which,  at  the  average  expense  at  that  place  per  annum  of  $50  each, 
will  amount  to  $75,750  annually.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  city 
of  Philadelphia  pays  for  the  support  of  foreign  paupers  more  than 
one-half  as  much  as  the  State  pays  for  the  common  school  education 
of  the  children  of  their  own  citizens  throughout  the  entire  State  of 
Pennsylvania.  And  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  there  is  paid  seven 
times  as  much  for  the  support  of  the  poor  of  foreign  countries  as  that 
city  pays  to  instruct  her  own  children  in  the  elements  of  an  ordinary 
education. 

It  ajipears  from  a  report  made  to  the  legislature  in  the  State  of 
New  York  by  the  secretary  of  State,  who  is  ex  ojficio  commissioner  of 
common  schools,  that,  in  the  year  1835,  532,167  children  in  that  State 
received  the  benefits  of  a  common  school  education,  at  an  expense  of 
|1, 235,256  02;  of  this  sum  $313,376  91  are  stated  to  have  been  "  de- 
frayed from  the  public  money."  And  it  will  be  found  that  for  the 
same  year  the  city  of  New  York  alone  paid  $205,506  63  for  the  sup- 
port of  their  pauper  population;  or,  in  other  words,  the  city  of  New 
York  alone  paid  for  the  support  of  foreign  paupers  an  amount  equal 
to  one-third  the  sum  paid  by  the  whole  State  for  the  education  of  her 
own  children.  It  is  stated  that  in  one  day  more  than  07ie  thousand 
three  hundred  j^aiqjcrs  from  Ireland  applied  to  the  commissioners  of 
the  almshouse  in  the  city  of  New  York  for  relief. 

In  1825  the  whole  number  of  aliens  in  the  State  of  New  York  was 
40,430.  By  the  late  census,  taken  in  1835,  it  appears  that  the  Avliole 
population  in  that  State  was  2,174,  517;  of  which  number  it  is  sup- 
posed there  were  at  least  163,337  aliens,  or  about  one  alien  to  every 
13  native  and  naturalked  citizens  in  the  State;  from  which  it  appears 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  65 

that  the  increase  of  aliens  within  the  ten  years  preceding  1835  in  that 
State  lias  been  at  the  rate  of  three  hundred  per  centum. 

The  following  table  Avill  show  not  only  the  alien  increase  of  pau- 
perism in  our  Atlantic  towns,  but  also  the  consequences  which  our 
citizens  are  subjected  to  by  the  policy  adopted  by  foreign  governments 
for  their  own  relief,  by  transporting  at  their  own  expense  to  America 
this  vagrant  population : 

In  N.  York,  1830,  the  number  relieved  was  15,506  at  cost  of  |246,752  90 
1831^  do.  do.  15,564      do.        245,433  21 

1833,  do.  do.  35,774      do.        295,239  13 

1834,  do.  do.  32,798      do.        304,913  21 

1835,  do.  do.  38,362       do.        323,741  12 

1836,  do.  do.  37,959       do.        396,100  05 

It  is  said  that  in  New  Hampshire  in  the  year  1800  there  was  only 
one  pauper  to  every  333  inhabitants ;  that  in  1820  there  was  one  pau- 
per to  every  100  of  the  inhabitants ;  and  that  the  expense  of  maintain- 
ing their  paupers  had  increased  from  $17,000,  in  the  former  year,  to 
$80,000  in  the  latter.  AVhen  the  contiguity  of  this  State  to  that  of 
a  foreign  government,  and  its  peculiarly  exposed  situation  to  the  in- 
gress of  mendicants  from  abroad,  are  taken  into  consideration,  few 
will  hesitate  to  account  for  this  extraordinary  increase  of  pauperism 
in  that  State. 

In  the  State  of  Massachusetts  it  is  said  that  the  number  of  paupers 
about  doubled  in  the  ten  years  preceding  1832. 

In  the  district  of  Southwark  and  the  Northern  Liberties  alone,  in 
Philadelphia,  there  were  in  the  year  1810, 1,390,  and  in  the  year  1820 
there  were  2,500;  their  number  having  nearly  doubled  in  ten  years. 
While  the  late  war  continued  with  Great  Britain  there  was  no  emi- 
gration from  that  country  to  the  United  States ;  and  for  several  years 
after  the  termination  of  hostilities  between  the  two  countries  the  num- 
ber of  emigrants  hither  was  quite  limited.  And  the  fact  is  not  un- 
worthy of  notice  that  in  proportion  as  the  number  of  emigrants  in- 
creases or  diminishes  is  the  increase  or  diminution  of  paupers  and 
convicts  in  the  penitentiaries  and  j)oor-houses  in  that  and  the  other 
Atlantic  cities.  And  at  the  time  when  the  emigration  from  Europe 
was  interrupted  the  number  of  poor  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  was 
reduced  down  to  fourteen  hundred;  and  in  1822,  when  the  policy  of 
some  of  the  European  States  was  in  successful  operation  of  relieving 
themselves  from  the  burden  of  maintaining  their  own  poor,  by  trans- 
porting them  to  America,  the  number  in  the  almshouse  in  that  city 
was  increased  to  3,090. 

It  is  said  that,  within  the  last  25  years,  $3,000,000  have  been  ex- 
pended in  the  city  and  county  of  Philadelphia  for  the  support  of  the 
poor  ;  and  while  the  population  there  has  increased  in  a  ratio  of  67 
per  cent.,  the  poor  rates  have  increased  nearly  at  the  rate  of  87. 

In  the  absence  of  particular  accounts  in  many  of  the  States  of  the 
number  of  their  paujjcrs,  in  others  of  the  amount  ])aid  for  their  sup- 
port, their  numbers  cannot  be  ascertained  with  absolute  precision;  yet, 
upon  the  hypotheses  assumed  in  the  annexed  answer  of  the  Native 
American  Association  of  the  city  of  Washington,  to  the  interrogato- 
H.  Kep.  359 5 


66  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

ries  propounded  to  that  association,  it  is  believed  the  results  arrived 
at  may  be  confidently  relied  on. 

The  fact  is  unquestionable  that  large  numbers  of  foreigners  are  annu- 
ally brought  to  our  country  by  the  authority,  and  at  the  expense  of 
foreign  governments,  and  landed  upon  our  shores  in  a  state  of  absolute 
destitution  and  dependence ;  many  of  them  of  the  most  idle  and  vicious 
class;  in  their  personal  appearance  the  most  offensive  and  loathsome; 
and  their  numbers  increasing  with  such  rapidity  by  emigration,  as  to 
become  burdensome  to  the  American  people ;  our  own  citizens  being 
obliged  to  contribute  largely  from  their  own  earnings  to  support  them 
in  idleness.  It  is  within  the  recollection  of  all,  that  within  the  last 
few  years  large  supplies  of  breadstufts  from  Europe  have  been  im- 
ported into  the  United  States,  and  not  only  paid  for  by  the  earnings 
of  our  citizens,  but  applied  to  the  maintenance  of  the  pauper  popula- 
tion of  the  very  country  from  which  these  breadstuffs  have  been  ob- 
tained. And  it  is  for  protection  and  defence  against  evils  of  this 
description,  that  the  American  citizens  have  implored  the  interposi- 
tion of  Congress.  The  necessity  for  importing  provisions  from  abroad 
has  arisen,  in  some  degree,  from  the  increase  of  population  in  the 
United  States,  much  greater  than  tlie  natural  increment  of  the  Ameri- 
can people,  with  a  population  of  12,806,000,  the  natural  increase  of 
which  would  be  146,325  less  than  what  it  now  is,  taking  into  account 
the  natural  increase  of  births  over  deaths.  If  tliis  estimate  is  correct, 
it  shows  that  our  population  is  increased  annually  146,325  from  other 
than  natural  causes  ;  and  whence  this  increase  but  by  emigration  from 
abroad  ?  And  when  it  is  borne  in  mind  that  this  foreign  pauper  popu- 
lation produce  little,  if  anything,  from  their  own  labor,  but  are  sup- 
plied principally,  if  not  entirely,  from  the  labor  of  our  own  citizens,  the 
reason  for  importing  breadstuffs  from  abroad  will  be  measurably  ac- 
counted for. 

The  committee  have  estimated  the  number  of  emigrants  who  arrive 
in  this  country  from  abroad  at  150,000  annually  ;  and  the  confidence 
in  the  correctness  of  that  estimate  will  be  strengthened  by  the  fact, 
that  the  annual  increase  of  population  in  the  United  States  is  greater, 
by  146,325  than  the  natural  increase  of  population  would  amount  to 
annually. 

On  ihe  4th  of  July,  1836,  a  resolution  was  adopted  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States,  directing  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  cause  to 
be  collected  and  laid  before  the  Senate,  at  its  then  next  session,  all 
such  facts  and  information  as  could  be  obtained  respecting  the  deporta- 
tion of  paupers  from  Great  Britain  and  other  places  ;  ascertaining  as 
nearl}'  as  possible  to  what  countries  such  persons  were  sent ;  where 
landed ;  and  what  provision,  if  any,  was  made  for  their  future  support. 
In  answer  to  this  resolution,  the  correspondence  and  documents  con- 
tained in  the  appendix  to  this  report,  and  marked  A,  were  submitted 
to  the  Senate. 

On  the  19th  of  March  last,  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  adopted  a  resolution  directing  the  Secretary  of  State  of 
the  United  States  to  report  to  them  a  statement  of  the  number  of  emi- 
grants from  foreign  countries  who  have  arrived  in  the  United  States 
annually,  during  the  last  ten  years;  the  places  at  which  they  arrived^ 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS.  67 

the  countries  from  which  they  came  ;  the  expense  of  their  transporta- 
tion hither  ;  by  whom  defrayed  ;  and  their  circumstances  and  con- 
dition generally  ;  with  such  other  information  relating  to  the  intro- 
duction into  the  United  States  of  foreign  paupers,  by  the  authority  of 
foreign  governments,  as  he  might  possess.  In  answer  to  this  resolu- 
tion, the  Secretary  of  State  reported,  among  other  things,  that  there 
was  a  correspondence  in  the  State  Department  on  the  subject  of  the 
introduction  into  the  United  States  of  foreign  paupers  ;  but  that  this 
correspondence  was  with  a  foreign  government,  and  could  not  be  com- 
municated without  the  direction  of  the  President  of  the  United  States  ; 
whereupon^  the  House  adopted  a  resolution  requesting  the  President 
of  the  United  States  to  communicate  to  the  House  copies  of  all  cor- 
respondence and  communications  which  have  passed  between  this  and 
any  foreign  government,  and  the  officers  or  agents  thereof,  relating  to 
the  introduction  of  foreign  paupers  into  the  United  States  ;  in  answer 
to  which,  the  House  received  the  correspondence  contained  in  the 
appendix  to  this  report,  in  document  marked  B.  The  committee  have 
been  furnished  with  letters  from  Mr.  Symonds,  keeper  of  the  house  of 
industry  at  South  Boston,  and  another  from  Mr.  Pollard,  late  city  mar- 
shal of  Boston.  Massachusetts,  which  are  contained  in  said  appendix, 
and  marked  C. 

The  committee  apprehend  that  few  Americans,  if  any,  will  doubt 
the  propriety  of  interposing  legislative  restrictions  upon  the  deporta- 
tion from  Europe  of  foreign  paupers  and  convicts  to  the  United  States. 
The  Avell  known  philanthropy  of  the  American  citizens,  and  the  libe- 
rality with  which  the  suffering  poor  and  afflicted  in  the  United  States 
are  supplied  with  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  the  freedom  with  which 
the  hand  of  friendship,  and  even  charity  has  been  extended  to  the 
sojourner  among  us  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe,  have  been  abused 
to  purposes  not  to  be  commended.  Notwithstanding  the  friendly  re- 
lations which  exist  between  the  government  of  the  United  States  and 
that  of  Great  Britain,  and  the  reciprocal  professions  of  a  desire  to 
maintain  equal  and  exact  justice  towards  each  other,  the  committee 
have  observed  with  regret  that  a  system  of  legislation  has  been  adopted 
in  that  country,  which  has  for  its  object  the  deportation  of  their  im- 
mense pauper  population  to  America,  and  the  tendency  of  which  is  to 
cast  them  upon  the  United  States,  regardless  alike  of  the  eifect  upon  the 
paupers  themselves,  and  the  interests  and  expectations  of  this  govern- 
ment. This  policy  has  prevailed  to  an  extent  highly  prejudicial  to 
the  tranquility  and  interests  of  ouf  citizens,  and  threatens  with  vio- 
lence all  our  peaceful  relations.  Anxious  to  provide  a  remedy  for 
present  and  accumulating  evils,  and  to  secure,  if  practicable,  the  ob- 
servance of  good  faith  on  the  part  of  foreign  governments  to  the  United 
States  the  committee  recommend  the  passage  of  a  bill,  which  they 
respectfully  ask  leave,  herewith  to  introduce,  to  prevent  the  deporta- 
tion of  paupers  and  convicts  from  foreign  countries  into  the  United 
States. 

But  the  deportarion  of  foreign  paupers  into  this  country  is  not  the 
only  subject  of  complaint  by  the  memorialists  :  the  indiscriminate  in- 
troduction of  all  classes  of  foreigners,  from  all  countries,  into  the 
United  States,  and  the  celerity  with  which  they  are  converted  into 


68  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

American  citizens,  without  regard  to  the  character  or  qualifications 
which  they  possess  to  sustain  the  important  relations  of  such  a  citizen, 
is  complained  of  as  a  present  evil,  and  from  which  consequences  more- 
prejudicial  to  the  social  condition  of  our  citizens  and  the  permanency 
of  our  institutions  are  apprehended  than  yet  have  been  exhibited.  At 
an  early  period  of  our  history,  and  before  the  adoption  of  the  federal 
Constitution,  the  power  of  conferring  upon  foreigners,  wlio  emigrated 
to  the  United  States,  the  exercise  of  political  rights,  was  deemed  by 
many  of  questionable  propriety;  yet,  under  the  old  confederation,  it 
was  granted  to  and  exercised  by  the  several  States.  The  want  of  uni- 
formity in  the  exercise  of  that  power  became  so  manifest  and  prejudi- 
cial, that,  upon  the  adoption  of  the  federal  Constitution,  the  exclusive 
rigid  of  exercising  the  power  was  vested  in  Congress ;  and  on  the  26th 
of  March,  1790,  Congress  passed  a  law  establishing  a  uniform  rule  of 
naturalization  ;  and  from  that  time  hitherto  the  power  has  been  exer- 
cised in  conformity  with  the  provisions  of  the  federal  Constitution. 
In  the  brief  period  oifive  years  from  the  time  of  landing  in  the  United 
States,  a  foreigner,  from  what  country  soever  he  may  have  come,  and 
whatever  his  character  may  have  been  previous  to  his  arrival,  under 
our  present  naturalization  laws,  may  become  a  citizen,  aud  entitled  to 
most  of  the  privileges  and  immunities  of  native-born  citizens,  by  a 
process  peculiarly  American.  As  soon  as  they  have  passed  the  ordeal 
of  naturalization,  they  are  eligible  to  places  of  honor,  confidence, 
power,  and  profit,  in  a  manner  and  to  an  extent  at  present  unknown 
in  any  other  civilized  country.  While  the  memorialists  claim  for  all 
who  sojourn  with  us,  or  become  domiciled  here,  the  protection  of  our 
laws  and  the  hospitality  of  our  citizens,  they  doubt  not  that  the  gov- 
ernment would  be  administered  as  well  at  least,  and  with  much  greater 
security,  by  native  American  citizens  than  by  foreigners,  and  more  in 
accordance  with  that  devotion  to  civil  liberty  which  characterized  the 
founders  of  our  institutions.  When  the  people  of  the  United  States 
were  driven  to  the  necessity  of  asserting  their  independence,  every 
effort  which  power  could  exercise  or  ingenuity  devise,  was  brought 
into  requisition  to  prevent  the  organization  of  a  republican  govern- 
ment ;  and  though  the  efforts  made  against  the  patriots  of  the  revolu- 
tion then  failed,  they  should  serve  to  remind  us  that  vigilance  is  the 
price  which  their  posterity  must  pay  for  the  enjoyment  of  that  liberty 
which  was  then  achieved ;  and  whether  prejudice  exists  or  designs  are 
entertained  hostile  to  our  liberties  or  not,  the  movements  of  foreign 
governments  and  that  of  foreigners  themselves,  which  may  have  an 
influence  on  the  prosperity  of  our  citizens  or  the  permanency  of  our 
institutions,  should  be  regarded  with  deliberation  and  vigilance,  if 
not  distrust.  When  the  original  declaration  of  American  indepen- 
dence was  proclaimed,  and,  indeed,  before  that  era  burst  upon  man- 
kind, which  }u-oniulgated  the  important  truth  that  man  was  capable 
of  governing  his  race  by  equal  and  just  laws,  the  American  i)eople 
were  awakened  to  a  just  sense  of  their  own  rights ;  they  discovered 
that  the  despotic  governments  of  the  old  world  were  in  hostility  to  the 
principles  which  they  deemed  essential  to  incorporate  into  the  institu- 
tions of  the  new.  The  principle  that  the  right  of  sovereignty  was 
inherent  in  i\iQ  people,  and  could  be  exercised  by  them,  was,  to  those 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  69 

governments,  a  political  heresy,  which  they  repudiated,  and  even  at 
this  day  they  regret ;  and,  although,  to  promote  ulterior  objects,  they 
may  have  yielded  to  the  temporary  supremacy  of  republican  principles 
in  conterminous  countries,  yet^  their  hostility  to  the  fundamental  doc- 
trines of  free  institutions  is  too  deep-rootdl  to  be  eradicated.  Foreign- 
ers, indeed,  may  change  their  domicil,  but  their  principles  in  regard 
to  the  institutions  of  civil  government  are  identified  with  those  of  the 
country  Avhich  gave  them  birth.  Man  is  as  incapable  of  disregarding 
these  impulses  as  he  is  wanting  in  disposition  to  do  so  ;  his  pride  is 
gratified  with  the  prosperity  of  his  native  country,  and  the  gloom  of 
melancholy  which  broods  upon  his  countenance  in  her  adversity,  indi- 
cates the  desire  which  he  would  sometimes  willingly  conceal.  The 
principle,  that  an  individual  OAves  an  allegiance  to  the  country  of  his 
nativity,  is  sustained  by  most  writers  on  international  law  ;  and  that 
this  allegiance  is  not  oxAj  i^erpetual,  but  intrinsic,  and  which  cannot 
be  divested  by  any  act  of  his  own,  is  regarded  by  many  as  a  funda- 
mental principle.  It  is  also  the  doctrine  of  the  common  law,  that  an 
individual  owes  a  natural  and  perpetual  allegiance  to  the  government 
of  the  country  in  which  he  was  born  ;  and  this,  too,  is  the  doctrine  of 
the  European  governments,  and  that  of  England  especially,  which 
insists  that  a  subject  born  in  England,  and  emigrating  from  that  to  a 
foreign  country,  and  taking  a  commission  from  a  foreign  prince,  and 
engaged  in  a  war  against  England,  is  guilty  of  treason,  and  liable  to 
be  prosecuted  to  condemnation  and  punishment  for  that  offence.  The 
right  to  recall  the  subjects  of  Great  Britain  from  a  foreign  country,  or 
from  foreign  service,  wherever  they  may  be,  or  wherever  they  may 
have  departed,  is  not  only  claimed,  but  exercised,  by  the  British  gov- 
ernment. In  October,  180*7,  the  King  of  England  issued  his  procla- 
mation reclaiming  from  foreign  service  all  seamen  and  seafaring  men, 
who  were  natural-born  subjects,  wherever  they  might  be,  upon  pain  of 
being  proceeded  against  for  their  omission  to  obey  the  call.  In  1814, 
the  Senate  of  the  IJnited  States  called  upon  the  President,  by  resolu- 
tion, to  inform  them  what  had  been  the  practice  of  Grreat  Britain  con- 
cerning her  native  subjects  naturalized  in  other  countries,  and  taken 
in  arms  against  her  ;  and,  in  answer  to  that  resolution,  it  was  stated 
that  the  British  government  arrest  as  traitors,  and  menace  with  death, 
persons  supposed  to  be  native  British  subjects,  for  having  fought  under 
our  standard  against  the  British  forces,  although  they  had  voluntarily 
entered  into  our  army,  after  having  emigrated  to  the  United  States, 
and  incorporated  themselves  into  the  American  society.  And  it  has 
become  an  historical  fact,  that  during  the  late  war  with  England, 
many  native-born  subjects  of  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  who  had  been 
naturalized  in  America,  and  were  taken  prisoners  on  the  northwest- 
ern frontier,  were  transported  to  England  to  be  tried  for  treason 
against  their  king. 

Without  deciding  upon  the  validity  of  such  claim,  Avould  it  be  ad- 
visable, within  the  short  period  of  Jive  years  from  the  day  of  their 
landing  upon  our  shoreS;,  to  cast  indiscriminately  upon  these  emigrants 
all  the  political  rights  and  privileges  of  native-born  citizens  ? — with 
the  natural  propensity  which  mankind  universally  possess  to  sustain 
the  institutions  of  the  country  which  gave  them  birth ;  with  the  claim 


"70  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

of  natural  allegiance  which  that  country  has  upon  them ;  with  the 
liability  of  being  recalled  by  their  native  sovereign,  and  in  case  of 
neglect  to  obey  such  call,  and  of  being  taken  in  arras  against  their 
native  sovereign,  to  be  subject  to  condemnation  and  the  punishment 
of  death  for  treason.  These  are  appalling  circumstances  in  view  of 
such  a  practice  ;  and  under  such  embarrassments  of  the  individual, 
can  it  be  desirable  to  add  to  the  embarrassments  of  our  country  also, 
by  conferring  the  most  important  political  rights  which  a  native-born 
citizen  can  enjoy,  prematurely  on  this  vast  number?  On  their  arrival 
in  the  United  States  they  must  be  ill  (jualiiied  to  exercise  the  political 
rights  of  a  republican  citizen;  rights  which,  in  their  native  country, 
they  could  never  enjoy  or  appreciate,  and  possessing  habits  Avhich,  in 
ours,  disqualify  them  from  mingling  Avith  our  citizens,  or  even  ap- 
preciating or  enjoying  here  the  free  institutions  of  our  country  ;  many 
of  them  not  informed  even  of  the  theory  of  our  government ;  and 
of  its  political  benefits  to  mankind,  they  are  equally  ignorant;  and 
though  they  may  possess  capacity,  which,  with  time  and  assiduity 
may  enable  them  to  become  useful  citizens,  yet  it  must  be  evident  to 
all,  thatj  in  their  present  uncultivated  state^  tliey  would  not  be  safe 
depositaries  of  our  country's  honor.  Many  of  them  can  neither 
read  nor  write,  and  believe  that  liberty  in  a  republican  government  con- 
sists in  the  unconstrained  exercise  of  individual  desire^  and  that  he  is 
the  best  republican  who  can  bring  into  conflict  the  greatest  extent  of 
physical  power.  Such  oj)inions  are  to  be  overcome  only  by  improve- 
ments in  the  knowledge  of  our  institutions,  and  the  practical  benefit 
which  they  universally  confer ;  and  to  accomplish  these  great  objects, 
time  and  observation  are  required^  as  well  as  a  patient  endurance  of 
the  toil  and  research  so  essential  to  the  acquisition  of  such  knowledge. 

Our  institutions  originated  in  an  expanded  view  of  the  rights  and 
duties  of  mankind  in  a  social  state,  and  are  only  to  be  preserved  by 
constant  vigilance  on  the  part  of  the  people,  and  by  confiding  them 
to  the  safe-keeping  of  such  as  possess  wisdom,  knowledge,  and  virtue. 
If  it  be  true  that  sovereignity  is  the  inherent  right  of  the  people,  it  is 
no  less  true  that  the  sovereign  power  should  be  exercised  with  delibera- 
tion and  intelligence;  and  the  question  recurs,  can  that  be  done  by 
those  hereinbefore  referred  to,  with  the  limited  information  which  they 
usually  acquire  in  the  brief  period  of  five  years?  And  is  it  reasonable 
to  conclude  that,  in  that  time,  their  propensities  for  their  native  coun- 
try can  be  overcome,  and  just  conceptions  of  tlie  principles  of  ours 
aquired? 

The  past  experience  of  the  world  has  shown  that  no  influence  is 
more  dangerous  to  the  government  of  any  country,  than  that  which 
is  exercised  from  abroad ;  and  there  is  certainly  none  more  to  be  appre- 
hended by  the  government  of  the  United  States  than  that  of  the 
monarchies  of  the  old  world :  they  have  no  just  concejition  of  the 
benefits  which  our  institutions  confer  upon  our  citizens,  and  upon 
mankind  in  a  civilized  and  social  state ;  and,  if  they  had,  the  hitherto 
unexampled  prosperity  which  has  accompanied  us  both  in  peace  and 
war,  would  not  fail  to  call  forth  additional  proofs  of  their  hostility. 
The  deep  interest  they  have  in  sustaining  their  own  government,  and 
of  destroying  ours,  and  the  means  of  accomplishing  objects  so  desirable 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS.  71 

to  them,  but  attended  with  such  fatal  consequences  to  us  and  the  world 
of  mankind,  of  infusing  into  our  population  a  spirit  of  insubordination 
and  a  resistance  to  the  constituted  authorities  of  our  government, 
present  considerations  which  should  not  be  disregarded. 

At  the  early  period  of  our  history  we  possessed  an  extended  public 
domain,  entirely  uncultivated,   with  numerous  savage  tribes  skirting 
our  frontier  ;  with  a  limited  population,    worn  out  by  the  fatigues, 
deprivations,   and  sufferings,  endured  in  a  long  and  sanguinary  war  ; 
these  considerations  induced  a  call  for  numbers  from  any  and  every 
quarter.     The  policy  of  admitting  foreigners  to  participate  with    us 
upon  an  equality  with  our  own  citizens  in  the  benefits  of  our  institutions 
was,  even  at  that  day,  and  under  such  circumstances,  doubted  by  many 
who  Avere  no   less  distinguished   for   their  philanthropy  than   their 
patriotism;    even   the   distinguished   author  of    the    Declaration    of 
American  Independence,  that  pab'iarch  of  republicanism  and  apostle 
of  civil  liberty,  Thomas  Jefferson,  expressed  strong  reluctance  to  the 
rapid  increase  of  our  population  by  the  introduction  of  foreign  emi- 
grants.    In  speaking  of  the  reasons  urged  by  the  friends  of  the  system, 
he  says:   ''Here  I  will  beg  leave  to  propose  a  doubt.     The  present 
desire  of  America  is,  to  produce  rapid  population  by  as  great  importa- 
tion of  foreigners  as  possible ;  but  is  this  founded  in  good  policy?     The 
advantage  proposed  is  the  multiplication  of  numbers.     Now  let  us 
suppose   (for  example  only)  that  in  this  State  (Virginia)  we  could 
double  our  numbers  in  one  year,  by  the  importation  of  foreigners ;  (and 
this  is  a  greater  accession  than  the  most  sanguine  advocate  for  emi- 
gration has  a  right  to  expect:)  then,  I  say,  beginning  with  a  double 
stock,  we  shall  attain  any  given  degree  of  population  only  twenty-seven 
years  and  three  months  sooner  than  if  we  proceed  on  our  single  stock. 
But,  are  there  no  inconveniences  to  be  thrown  into  the  scale  against 
the  advantage  expected  from  a  multiplication  of  numbers  by  the  im- 
portation of  foreigners?     It  is  for   the  happiness  of  those  united  in 
society  to  harmonize  as  much  as  possible  in  matters  which  they  must 
of  necessity  transact  together.     Civil  government  being  the  sole  object 
of  forming  societies,  its  administration  must  be  conducted  bv  common 
consent.     Every  species  of  government  has  its  specific  principles  ;  ours, 
perhaps,  are  more  peculiar  than  those  of  any  other  in  the  universe. 
It  is  a  composition  of  the  purest  principles  of  the  English  constitution, 
with  others,  derived  from  natural  right  and  natural  reason.     To  these 
nothing  can  be  more  opposed  than  the  maxims  of  absolute  monarchies ; 
yet  from  such  we  are  to  expect  the  greatest  number  of  emigrants. 
They  will  bring  with  them  the  principles  of  the  governments  they  have 
imbibed  in  their  early  youth  ;  or,  if  able  to  throw  them  ofi",  it  will  be 
in  exchange  for  an  unbounded  licentiousness,  passing,  as  is  usual,  from 
one  extreme  to  another.     It  would  be  a  miracle  were  they  to  stop  pre- 
cisely at  the  point  of  temperate  liberty.     These  principles,  with  their 
language,  they  will  transmit  to  their  children.     In  proportion  to  their 
numbers  they  will  share  with  us  the  legislation  ;  they  will  infuse  into 
it  their  spirit,  Avarp  and  bias  its  direction,  and  render  it  a  heterogeneous, 
incoherent,  distracted  mass.     I  may  appeal  to  experience  during  tJie 
present  contest  for  a  verification  of  these  conjectures ;  but,  if  they  be 
not  certain  in  event,  are  they  not  possible,  are  tliey  not  probable?     Is 


72  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

it  not  safer  to  wait  with,  patience  the  twenty-seven  years  and  three 
months  longer  for  the  attainment  of  any  degree  of  population  desired 
or  expected?  May  not  our  government  be  more  homogeneous,  more 
peaceable,  more  durable?" 

These  doubts  wer^thrown  out  by  Mr.  Jefferson  in  1781  and  1782, 
and  are  full  of  instruction  to  the  present  generation ;  and  many  of  the 
embarrassments  Avhicli  he  then  saw,  as  through  a  glass,  dimly^  have 
since  become  a  portion  of  the  recorded  liistory  of  our  country.  It 
requires  noiu  no  prophetic  vision  to  penetrate  the  veil  which  has  con- 
cealed forthcoming  events ;  they  have  already  cast  their  shadows 
before,  and  the  evils  predicted  are  now  in  daily  fulfilment.  The 
practical  operation  of  natural  causes  upon  mankind,  or  the  benefits  of 
experience  upon  theories  of  human  invention,  should  not  be  disregarded 
in  a  vain  efibrt  to  sustain  the  speculations  of  visionary  theorists.  In 
the  affairs  of  civil  government,  the  admonitions  of  experience  are  rarely 
disregarded  with  impunity.  Let  him  who  is  in  pursuit  of  permanent 
benefits  regard  the  landmarks  which  a  successful  predecessor  has 
created  for  his  observation^  and  his  labors  will  be  not  only  diminished, 
but  the  perils  of  the  original  enterprize  avoided. 

The  republics  of  olden  times  were  not  less  auspicious  in  their  origin, 
nor  had  in  prospect  less  hope  for  the  amelioration  of  the  condition  of 
mankind,  or  to  stimulate  the  patriot  or  the  philanthropist,  than  that 
of  America — and  now,  where  are  they?     And  what,  but  an  insidious 
foreign  influence^  which  a  sickly,  time-serving  sympathy  had  indulged 
until  it  obtained  the  entire  ascendancy,  has  produced  their  destruction  ? 
And  will  not  our  republic,  upon  which  rests  the  last  hope  of  man  for 
republican  institutions,  regard  the  beacon-lights  which  past^  experi- 
ence has  erected  for  our  safety?     The  idea  that  foreigners  arriving  in 
the  United  States  are,  upon  tlieir  arrival  in  our  country,  entitled  to 
all  the  rights  of  citizenship,  is  not  well  founded.    Howfer  they  should 
be  permitted  ta  enjoy  the  privileges  of  native  citizens  is  a  question  of 
policy,  and  rests  entirely  with  the  American  people ;  and  that  which, 
in  this  country,  with  a  population  of  four  millions,  having  in  view  a 
common  object,  w«)uld  have  been  discreet  and  proper ;  with  a  mixed 
population   of  thirteen   millions,   with  diversified  objects,  speaking 
different  languages,  with  no  common  incentive  to  sustain  a  republican 
form  of  government,  might  be  dangerous  in  the  extreme.     Those  who 
mingled  with  our  fathers  m  their  struggle  for  liberty,  as  well  as  those 
who  have  taken  refuge  from  the  agitations  of  convulsed  Europe  and 
undergone  the  scrutinizing  process  of  naturalization  in  our  country, 
are  strongly  recommended  to  our  confidence^  and  have  acquired  rights 
not  to  be  violated.     Among  them  may  be  numbered  many  who  are 
conspicious   for  their  virtue,   intelligence,   and  patriotism,  and  are 
ornaments  to  the  country  which  has  inscribed  their  names  upon  the 
roll  of  her  citizens.     If  all  who  emigrated  hither  were  of  this  descrip- 
tion, the  evils  apprehended  would  not  be  as  appalling  as  they  now 
appear:  then,  indeed,  might  we  safely  welcome  them  to  this  asylum 
for  the  oppressed  of  all  nations,  and  allow  them  to  participate  with  us 
in  the  enjoyment  of  political  rights.     But  as  no  rule  of  discrimination 
can  be  adopted  without  creating  invidious  distinctions,  the  committee 
have  adopted  the  conclusion  that  the  term  of  probation  should  be  ex- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  73 

tended  from  five  to  —  years  for  all  wlio  shall  be  naturalized.  The 
power  of  passing  laws  regulating  the  naturalization  of  foreigners,  is 
vested  in  Congress  exclusively ;  and  to  preserve  uniformity  in  their 
execution,  it  should  be  confided  to  the  courts  of  the  United  States,  or 
the  supreme  court  in  the  several  States.  If  all  foreigners  who  emi- 
grate to  the  United  States,  and  seek  the  protection  of  our  laws,  were 
equally  well  informed,  tlie  necessity  for  extending  the  time  of  their 
probation  might  not  exist:  thousands  are  ignorant  of  the  first  rudi- 
ments of  education  who  seek  our  country,  and  time  must  be  afibrded 
them  for  improvement  in  the  various  pursuits  which  control  their 
habits  and  regulate  their  intercourse  with  our  citizens,  before  they 
can  be  qualified  to  perform  the  duties  or  appreciate  the  privileges  of 
American  citizens.  The  fundamental  principles  of  the  European 
governments,  and  that  of  the  United  States^  difier  in  every  essential 
particular;  there,  no  regard  is  had  to  the  diffusion  of  knowledge 
among  the  lower  class  of  the  people ;  here,  one  of  the  first  duties  of 
the  government  is  to  communicate  intelligence  to  the  young  through 
a  system  of  common-school  education ;  the  most  humble  are  educated, 
and  all  fitted  for  usefulness  when  they  arrive  at  mature  age.  With 
improved  judgments,  with  minds  cultivated,  with  their  moral,  socia,l 
and  physical  condition  regulated  and  enlarged  by  education,  they  at 
once  enter  upon  the  various  duties  of  life,  qualified  to  become  useful 
citizens  ;  and  v^ithout  these  essential  requisites,  in  some  degree,  the 
privilege  of  citizenship  must  be  exercised  in  an  imperfect  manner. 

Great  complaint  is  also  made  that  frauds  are  practiced  in  the  courts 
of  inferior  jurisdiction,  in  procuring  certificates  of  naturalization  ; 
this  may,  in  some  degree,  be  avoided  by  submitting  the  excution  of 
the  law  to  the  United  States  courts^  or  the  supreme  courts  of  the 
several  States.  It  is  also  thought  advisable  to  require  a  previous 
declaration,  in  all  cases  to  be  made  of  record,  of  the  intentions  of  the 
applicant  to  become  a  citizen,  to  entitle  him  to  obtain  a  certificate  of 
naturalization. 

To  carry  out  the  views  herein  expressed,  the  committee  respectfully 
ask  leave,  herewith,  to  report  a  bill  for  the  revision  of  the  laws  regu- 
lating the  naturalization  of  foreigners. 


No.  24. 

Mr.  Symonds'  letter  to  James  Boyd,  Esq. 

House  of  Industry, 
South  Boston,  3Iarch  9,  1835. 

Dear  Sir  :  Your  note  of  this  date,  asking  for  information  relating 
to  foreign  paupers,  and  the  mode  of  their  introduction  into  this  State, 
is  received,  and  deserves  a  better  reply  than  I  shall  be  able  to  give. 
It  will  not  be  possible  for  me  to  state  many  facts  of  the  precise  nature 
you  require.  Proof  positive  that  Europeans  who  are  paupers  here 
were  paupers  at  home  is  not  easily  obtained.     But  few  will  give  any 


*74  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

account  of  themselves  that  can  be  relied  on  with  much  confidence.  In 
some  instances  it  is  said  that  circumstantial  evidence  is  the  best. 
From  the  appearance,  ignorance,  and  conduct  of  at  least  two-thirds 
of  the  foreigners  who  become  inmates  of  this  establishment,  I  have  no 
doubt  they  were  paupers,  beggars,  vagrants,  or  rogues  in  their  own 
countries,  which  "they  have  left  for  their  countries'  good."  Some 
are  idiotic,  or  too  inefficient  for  self-direction  ;  others  are  insane, 
and  have  doubtless  been  so  for  a  long  time  ;  some  are  aged  and  quite 
infirm  ;  some  have  chronic  incurable  diseases  ;  many  are  idle  impos- 
tors, who  well  know  how  to  excite  sympathy  by  feigning  all  the 
"ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to  ;"  many  are  mothers  with  numerous  chil- 
dren, who  have  been  or  pretend  to  have  been,  abandoned  by  their  hus- 
bands ;  and  not  a  few  are  females  who  arrive  enciente  without  any  hus- 
bands, but  the  imaginary  ones  they  tell  us  of  as  having  abandoned 
them  at  Halifax  or  St.  John's,  soon  after  their  arrival. 

Perhaps  half  of  the  foreign  poor  that  come  into  Boston  state  that 
they  came  by  land  from  the  British  provinces  and  from  New  York. 
They  may  tell  this  story  when  they  came  by  water,  and  give  a  wrong 
name  ;  it  is  nearly  impossible  to  ascertain  how  they  did,  in  fact, 
make  their  ingress.  They  often  pretend  to  have  come  in  vessels  of 
names  that  were  never  enrolled  in  the  marine  lists.  I  have  no  doubt 
many  are  reported  and  bonded  by  wrong  names  ;  others  cannot  spell 
their  names,  and  mistakes  are  honestly  made. 

The  directors  have  a  list  of  over  one  hundred  who  have  been 
inmates  during  the  last  year,  who  are  known  or  believed  to  be 
chargeable  to  vessels  and  their  owners  under  the  law  of  1830  or  1831. 
Several  bills  have  been  paid,  and  thirteen  persons  have  been  re- 
shipped  to  the  ports  from  whence  they  came,  in  Maine  and  the  pro- 
vinces. Many  other  bills  will  doubtless  be  collected  ;  but  in  other 
cases  the  collection  is  doubtful,  either  from  the  absence  of  the  vessel 
or  want  of  positive  testimony. 

I  will  state  several  ficts  that  will  serve  to  illustrate  some  of  the 
preceding  remarks. 

A  paupQr  family  arrived  in  Boston,  last  spring,  from  St.  John's. 
The  idiotic  father  has  been  supported  in  this  house  most  of  the  time 
since,  and  an  insane  daughter  was  here  a  short  time,  and  afterwards 
placed  in  the  insane  hospital  at  Charlestown,  at  three  dollars  per 
week,  at  the  expense  of  this  city.  As  the  family  were  evidently  poor, 
I  asked  the  mother,  who  came  here  to  visit  her  husband  and  daughter, 
how  their  expenses  were  paid  from  St.  John's  to  Boston  ?  She  replied, 
"by  the  mayor  of  St.  John's." 

A  woman  Avas  here  several  weeks  last  fall,  with  four  sickly  children, 
just  arrived  from  the  same  port ;  she  declared  that  "  their  passage  was 
paid  by  the  British  Society  in  St.  John's." 

An  English  woman  and  her  six  children  have  been  supported  here 
for  several  months.  The  husband  and  father,  an  inefficient  man, 
who  is  somewhere  in  the  vicinity,  has  told  me  that  his  family  received 
parish  aid  in  England  ;  that  the  parish  paid  their  passage  to  Phila- 
delphia, and  that  they  came  into  this  State  by  land. 

An  old  man,  incapable  of  labor,  from  Kent,  England,  has  lately 
been  seeking  cliarity  in  this  city.     He  applied  to  Rev.  Dr.  Tucker- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  75 

man  and  others.  He  stated  that  he  was  one  of  fifty  paupers  sent  out 
"by  his  own  and  adjoining  parishes.  They  were  landed  at  Quebec, 
when  each  received  a  sovereign,  and  were  then  turned  adrift  to  seek 
their  broad  where  they  could  find  it. 

An  old  man  from  England  was  lately  committed  to  this  house  by 
the  police  court,  as  ''  an  idle  person  going  about  begging."  He  said 
he  had  just  arrived  in  Boston  in  the  ship  War's  End,  (no  such  ves- 
sel ever  visited  Boston,)  and  that  he  was  over  eighty  years  old.  He 
appeared  so  sickly  that  no  one  thought  of  giving  him  work  ;  but  he 
found  means  to  escape  over  the  high  stockade  fence,  and  is  doubtless 
living  on  charity  somewhere  else. 

Among  these  poor  emigrants  are  some  who  are  highly  deserving  of 
pity  and  relief;  others  are  impostors  of  the  worst  stamp.  I  verily 
believe  that  some  aggravate  their  sores  and  sicknesses  solely  to  get 
charity,  or  gain  admission  into  almshouses  and  infirmaries.  I  also 
believe  that  many  who  manage  to  live  on  public  or  private  charity 
during  the  winter,  or  in  seasons  of  temporary  embarrassment  and 
sickness,  have  savings  deposited  in  bank,  or  in  their  priests'  hands  ; 
but  they  are  generally  too  cunning  to  be  found  out. 

Not  long  since  a  man  and  his  wife  gained  admittance  here,  appa- 
rently from  stern  necessity ;  but  we  found  between  forty  and  fifty  dol- 
lars concealed  in  their  rags.     Of  course  they  were  discharged. 

A  woman  who  came  out  last  year  from  Ireland,  via  Halifax,  died 
in  this  houSe  to-day.  Three  soverings  were  found  sewed  up  in  her 
clothing. 

Impositions  are  practiced  in  obtaining  permits  for  admission  by  such 
characters  ;  but  we  turn  them  out  when  convinced  of  it.  Some  time 
since  I  saw  a  vagabond  apply  at  the  office  in  the  city  for  a  permit,  the 
very  picture  of  misery — lame,  ragged,  and  dirty.  Humanity  seemed 
to  require  his  immediate  admittance.  But  after  my  return  to  the 
house,  he  arrived  there  with  a  firm  step,  well  clothed,  and  of  quite 
decent  appearance.  He  lost  his  intended  winter  quarters.  It  is  not 
to  be  expected  that  overseers,  however  shrewd  and  experienced,  can 
always  detect  imposters.  One  a  Frenchman,  was  here  several  months, 
pretending  to  be  deaf  and  dumb.  He  went  out  on  liberty,  returned 
drunk,  and  as  loquacious  as  any  man.  Another  pauper  pretended  to 
be  so  lame  that  he  could  not  walk  without  crutches.  He  was  at  last 
discovered  to  be  an  impostor,  his  crutches  were  taken  from  him,  and 
he  ran  away  without  them. 

I  have  cited  these  circumstances_,  though  not  called  for  in  your  in- 
quiry, principally  to  show  the  character  of  foreign  poor,  and  the 
extreme  difficulty  of  obtaining  from  them  any  account  of  their  former 
situation  and  mode  of  ingress. 

I  can  think  of  no  way  that  Massachusetts  can  keep  out  the  paupers 
of  other  countries  and  other  States,  so  long  as  the  idea  is  common 
that  good  provision  is  here  made  for  them,  and  so  long  as  the  general 
government  take  no  steps  on  the  subject.  It  may  be  well  to  do  what 
may  be  to  prevent  their  coming  by  water  from  foreign  ports  and  coast- 
wise. 

In  New  York  the  following  is  substantially  the  mode  of  proceeding : 

Masters  of  all  vessels,  coasters  as  well  as  others,  must  report  all 


76  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

unnaturalized  passengers,  within  twenty-four  hours  after  arrival,  under 
penalty  of  $75  each  for  making  a  partial  report,  $500  for  each  short 
reported.  An  agent,  on  the  arrival  of  a  vessel  with  passengers,  goes 
on  board  and  examines  the  condition  of  each  one,  and  determines  the 
amount  of  commutation ;  which  may  be  from  one  to  ten  dollars  per 
head,  according  to  circumstances.  It  is  optional  with  the  merchant 
to  commute,  or  give  bonds  to  indemnify  the  city.  The  bonds  are 
recorded  in  the  city,  and  sent  to  the  almshouse.  Passengers  are 
generally  commuted.  The  city  receives  about  thirty  thousand  dollars 
annually  from  this  source. 

The  commutation  money,  five  dollars,  as  fixed  by  law  in  this  State, 
is  now  too  high,  I  think;  masters  of  vessels  prefer  giving  bonds,  and 
then  it  is  exceedingly  difiicnlt  to  trace  out  passengers  after  they  have 
become  paupers.  I  can  think  of  no  way  to  manage  this  business  well, 
without  an  agent  expressly  to  attend  to  it  during  the  emigration 
season.  I  think,  too,  that  when  alien  passengers  are  bonded,  it  should 
be  for  seven  or  ten  years,  instead  of  three,  as  at  present. 

In  my  estimation,  our  whole  system  of  pauper  policy  is  out  of  joint. 
Too  much  is  done  to  relieve,  and  too  little  to  iwevent  poverty.  I  do 
not  believe  that  public  sentiment  and  public  intelligence  on  this  sub- 
ject are  ripe  for  important  innovations.  I  think  facts  and  information 
must  be  collected,  and  spread  out  to  the  public  before  any  great  im- 
provement can  be  efiected.  , 

Excuse  this  hasty  communication. 

With  great  respect,  j'^our  obedient  servant, 

AETEMAS  SYMONDS. 


B.  Pollard,  esq.,  city  marshal,  to  James  Boyd. 

City  Marshal's  Office,  3Iarch  10,  1835. 

Dear  Sir  :  The  questions  you  have  proposed  to  me  in  behalf  of  a 
committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  on  the  subject  of  foreign 
pauperism,  I  am  not  able  to  answer  so  distinctly  and  precisel)^  as  they 
should  be,  without  access  to  better  means  of  information  than  I  pos- 
sess ;  for  more  authentic  details,  as  to  the  introduction  of  actual  pau- 
pers/rom  abroad,  u'ho  may  have  become  chargeable  to  the  commonwealtli, 
soon  after  their  landing  in  Boston,  I  must  refer  you  to  the  directors  of 
the  house  of  industry,  or  to  the  superintendent  of  that  establishment. 

Such  information  as  I  possess,  however,  is  at  your  command.  On 
the  files  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  we  have  numerous  lists  of  pas- 
sengers from  foreign  ports  and  places,  part  of  whom  are  bonded,  and 
part  not.  Masters  of  vessels,  on  their  arrival,  report  their  passengers 
to  the  city  clerk.  If  they  are  not  likely  to  become  chargeable,  no  bond 
or  head  money  is  required.  If  they  are  so  liable,  he  causes  the  master 
or  owner  to  give  bonds  under  the  law  to  save  the  commonwealth  from 
all  charges  for  the  support  of  said  passengers  during  the  space  of  three 
years  after  their  arrival.  Very  few  masters  are  willing  to  pay  five 
dollars  a  head  for  each  passenger  landed.     They  prefer  to  charge 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  77 

something  beyond  the  usual  price  of  a  passage  for  every  foreigner, 
and  then  to^'ive  bonds  to  the  commonwealth,  thereby  taking  the  risk 
of  future  results.  Should  any  of  them  become  a  burden,  the  master 
pays  for  their  support,  or  removes  them  to  the  place  where  he  brought 
them.  Many  persons  prevent  this  sort  of  reaction  from  being  very 
general;  the  principal  one  is,  the  difficulty  of  ascertaining  correctly 
the  names  of  Irish  and  other  passengers,  and  afterwards  the  greater 
difficulty  of  establishing  tlieir  identity. 

The  number  of  vessels  which  brought  passengers  into  this  j)ort  from 
other  States  and  foreign  places,  who  were  not  bonded,  or  who  paid 
head  money,  (and  these  were  very  few,)  or  were  not  likely  to*  become 
chargeable,  was  as  follows,  namely :  in  the  year  1833,  120  vessels;  in 
the  year  1834,  133  vessels.  The  number  of  passengers  who  were 
bonded  during  that  period,  was  twenty-three  hundred  and  fifty-six,  as 
will  ap})ear  by  the  return  annexed,  which  also  states  the  places  whence 
they  came. 

I  am  pefectly  convinced  that  a  small  tax  of  a  dollar,  or  at  most  two 
dollars,  on  each  passenger  landed  within  the  commonwealth,  without 
requiring  bonds  to  be  given,  would  be  the  most  effective  way  of  crea- 
ting a  fund  for  the  support  of  foreign  paupers,  and  reimbursing  the 
commonwealth  for  their  expenditures.  Leaving  the  option  of  a  bond 
or  a  tax  to  the  master,  he  will  prefer  the  former  in  all  cases,  except 
the  tax  be  very  small.  Perhaps,  however,  the  principle  of  commuta- 
tion ma}'  be  necessar}'  in  the  law,  in  order  to  give  it  constitutional 
validity.  I  conceive  that  $5,000  a  year,  at  leasts  might  be  obtained 
from  the  price  of  one  dollar  a  head  for  all  foreign  passengers  landed. 
In  such  case  a  suitable  officer  should  be  appointed  by  the  common- 
wealth to  see  to  the  execution  of  the  law. 

The  embarrassment  attending  the  subject  of  foreign  pauperism,  I 
am  disposed  to  think^  does  not  arise  so  much  IVom  the  introduction  of 
poor  persons  into  the  State — which  it  is  wholly  impossible  to  prevent — 
as  from  a  non-execution  of  the  existing  pauper  law  after  the  paupers 
have  become  chargeable  to  the  commonwealth.  I  imagine  the  policy 
of  this  statute  respecting  persons  who  have  no  legal  settlement  therein, 
and  who  have  become  a  State  charge,  has  of  late  years  become  neg- 
lected, even  if  it  were  well  understood. 

All  the  provision  that  I  am  acquainted  with,  touching  this  subject, 
is  to  be  found  in  the  thirteenth  section  of  the  statute  passed  February, 
1794.  The  intention  of  this  law  I  conceive  to  be  perfectly  plain.  The 
general  court  did  not  wish  to  refuse  giving  any  support  ivhatever  to  the 
infirm  or  incapable  poor  not  having  a  settlement,  but  they  made  a  pro- 
vision coupled  with  certain  conditions  :  they  agreed  to  support  poor 
persons  of  this  description,  provided  they  have  no  relations  chargeable 
by  law  for  their  maintenance.  But  such  persons,  when  supported  by 
government,  were  made  liable  to  be  proceeded  against  in  case  they 
were  able-bodied  and  capable  of  doing  something.  What  is  this  pro- 
ceeding? The  overseers  of  the  poor  may  make  complaint  to  a  magis- 
trate, who  will  issue  his  warrant,  and  "  cause  such  paupers  to  be  sent 
and  conveyed  by  land  or  water  to  any  other  State,  or  to  any  place  be- 
yond sea,  where  they  belong,  if  they  may  be  conveniently  removed  at 
the  expense  of  the  commonwealth ;  but  if  they  cannot  be  so  removed^ 


78  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS. 

they  may  be  sent  to  and  relieved  and  employed  in  the  house  of  correc- 
tion or  workhouse,  at  the  public  expense.  "  • 

Js  it  not  obvious  that  the  execution  of  this  law^  either  by  removing 
a  number  of  paupers  to  St.  John's,  Eastport,  or  other  places,  from 
our  house  of  iudustry_,  under  the  authority  of  a  magistrate's  precept, 
or  by  employing  them  in  workhouses  or  houses  of  correction,  would 
soon  lessen  the  expense  of  the  commonwealth  ?  In  the  first  place, 
there  would  be  an  actual  reduction  of  charge  from  the  number  who 
might  be  removed ;  and  in  the  next,  an  indirect  reduction  would  result 
from  those  who  would  run  away,  or  be  deterred  from  going  to  the 
poor-h(fLise  for  fear  of  the  consequences,  namely,  transportation  or  the 
house  of  correction.  It  would  be  necessary  to  provide,  under  a  penalty, 
for  the  execution  of  the  law  by  proper  officers.  Before  making  any 
new  provisions  on  the  subject,  I  sincerely  hope  that  an  experiment  of 
the  present  laio  may  be  tried.  It  is  absurd  to  suppose  we  want  a  new 
law,  until  it  is  ascertained  that  those  we  have  are  good  for  nothing. 
I  am.  &c.,  vour  obedient  servant, 

BENJ.  POLLAKD,  Marshal. 


Mr.  Symonds  to  Mr.  Fletcher. 

Boston,  June  8,  1838. 

Sir  :  Please  accept  my  thanks  for  your  favor  of  the  24th  ultimo, 
the  accompanying  statistical  public  documents,  and  the  reports  of  the 
Secretaries  of  State  and  of  the  Treasurv,  on  the  introduction  of  foreign 
paupers.  For  some  years  I  have  had  something  to  do  with  the  jmuper 
management  in  this  city,  but  am  not  sure  that  I  can  "^  communicate 
•any  information"  of  importance  on  this  subject,  not  already  before  the 
public.  « 

That  the  introduction  of  paupers,  vagrants,  and  criminals,  from 
Europe,  is  an  evil,  will  not,  it  is  presumed,  be  denied  by  any  intelli- 
gent and  unprejudiced  observer.  Of  the  extent  of  this  evil  we  have 
■no  precise  and  full  information.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  statistics 
of  pauperism,  imported,  as  well  as  of  native  origin,  have  never  been 
collected  in  the  United  S:ates.  The  periodical  reports  of  a  few  poor- 
officers,  and  public  charitable  institutions  in  the  large  cities,  and  occa- 
sional legislative  reports,  are  nearly  all  that  have  been  published.  In 
Massachusetts  and  New  York  the  overseers  of  the  poor  make  annual 
full  returns  to  the  secretaries  of  State,  and  abstracts  are  published. 
I  am  not  aware  that  the  same  is  done  in  any  other  States.  If  a  full 
account  of  native  and  foreign  paupers  in  all  the  States  could  be  ob- 
tained, national  and  State  legislation  might  be  attempted  more  under- 
;3tandingly. 

Puring  the  year  1837,  there  were  1,443  persons  supported  for  longer 
or  shorter  periods  of  time  (some  for  the  whole  year,  others  for  only  a 
few  days)  in  the  Boston  house  of  industry,  or  alms-house.  Of  that 
number  G89  were  foreigners,  besides  1-51  children  of  unnaturalized 
foreign  parents.  Oue  hundred  and  one  of  the  689  came  into  the  State 
less  than  a  year  before  their  admission  to  the  house.  During  the  same 
period  out-door  relief  was  afforded  to  612  foreigners,  of  whom  at  least 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  79 

84  had  been  less  than  a  j-'ear  in  the  State.  But  the  returns  of  th 
legal  overseers  of  the  poor  do  not  show  the  full  burden  borne  by  this 
community  for  the  support  of  foreign  poor.  Private. and  associated 
charity,  as  you  are  Avell  aware,  is  liberally  extended  in  this  city,  and 
it  is  absorbed  to  a  great  extent  by  foreigners.  Great  efforts  are  made 
to  prevent  demoralizing  street-beggary,  but  foreign  beggars  are  by  no 
means  rare. 

From  the  1st  of  January  to  the  1st  of  May,  1838,  the  admissions  to 
the  house  of  industry  have  been — 

Americans  ___---_       loi 

Foreigners,  107;  children  and  unnaturalized  foreigners,  54  =       161 


Total       -------       262 


The  annual  report  of  the  directors  of  the  house  of  industry  to  the 
city  council,  presented  last  month,  says:  ''As  usual,  the  great  major- 
ity of  persons  who  claim  entire  support  in  the  almshouse  are  foreigners 
and  their  children.  Many  of  them  have  been  but  a  short  time  in  the 
country.  The  law  of  the  commonwealth,  (in  relation  to  alien  pas- 
sengers,) passed  the  last  year,  enforced  as  it  has  been  by  the  vigilant 
and  judicious  services  of  the  alien  inspector,  has  doubtless  prevented 
a  large  accession  to  the  pauper  rolls  of  this  city.  Foreign  paupers, 
however,  continue  to  find  their  way  into  Massachusetts  from  the  Brit- 
ish provinces  and  New  York,  and  we  can  look  only  to  the  general 
government  for  an  effectual  remedy  to  this  evil." 

The  effect  of  the  alien  inspection  law  is,  to  make  owners  and  mas- 
ters of  vessels  cautious  in  bringing  pauper  passengers. 

Of  the  almost  overwhelming  pauperism  of  Great  Britain,  of  the 
corrupt  and  corrupting  administration  of  the  poor-laws  prior  to  1834, 
of  the  degraded  character  of  the  paupers  of  Britain,  and  of  the  famous 
poor-law  amendment  act  of  1833, 1  presume  you  are  informed.  A  much 
more  rigid  system  of  granting  relief  has  been  adopted,  and  strong 
efforts  are  made  to  reduce  the  pauperism  of  the  kingdom.  One  pro- 
vision of  the  new  law  should  be  observed  by  Americans,  namely _,  the 
authority  given  to  parishes  to  raise  money  by  loans  to  deport  their  set- 
tled parish  paiqjers.  Nominally,  these  deported  parish  paupers  may 
be  sent  to  Canada,  but  it  must  be  recollected  no  public  provision  is 
made  in  British  America  for  the  support  of  the  poor.  Hence  it  must 
be  expected  that  the  indigent,  who  have  habitually  received  "parish 
pay"  in  Europe,  will  look  for  it  in  America,  and  will  soon  pass  from 
Canada  into  the  United  States,  where  there  are  poor-laws,  fashioned 
too  after  the  old  English  model.  Some  are  deported  direct  to  the 
United  States:  there  is  proof  of  this  in  official  British  documents.  In 
the  first  annual  report  of  the  poor-law  commissioners,  (1835,)  page 
41,  is  a  table  showing  the  deportation  of  some  three  hundred  paupers, 
fifty  of  whom  were  "to  the  United  States."  I  have  not  seen  the 
reports  of  1836  and  1837 ;  probably  they  contain  similar  evidence, 

I  have  conversed  with  hundreds  of  Europeans  who  are  or  have  been 
receiving  or  asking  public  charity.  In  general  they  do  not  admit  that 
they  have  ever  been  paupers  in  their  own  countries,  although  their 
character,  appearance,  and  disabilities  afford  strong  ground  to  suppose 


80  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

them  to  have  heen  burdensome  to  some  community.  Some,  however, 
declare  that  they  were  paupers  '^at  home,"  and  that  their  passage 
money  was  paid  by  parish  overseers,  their  clergy,  Landlords,  and  rela- 
tives. Some  time  since,  an  English  woman  and  her  six  children  were 
supported  for  several  months  in  the  Boston  almshouse.  The  husband 
and  father  visited  them,  and  was  urged  to  provide  for  his  family;  he 
would  scarcely  admit  that  it  was  his  duty  to  do  so  ;  he  had  received 
'■^  parish  pay"  in  England,  according  to  the  number  of  his  family, 
and  seemed  to  think  he  had  a  right  to  claim  their  support  from  the 
public.  He  stated  that  the  parish  to  which  he  belonged  defrayed  the 
expense  of  emigration  to  the  United  States. 

I  have  known  a  considerable  number  claiming  public  support  here 
who  have  been  British  soldiers,  and  afterwards  life  pensioners  on  ac- 
count of  disability.  They  have  sold  out  their  pension  rights  to  gov- 
ernment for  four  years'  pay  and  one  hundred  acres  of  land,  engaging 
to  leave  England.  After  spending  their  commutation  money,  they 
have  become  hopeless  paupers  in  this  country. 

By  far  the  greater  part  of  foreign  paupers  in  New  England  are  from 
Great  Britain.  Some,  however,  are  from  other  parts  of  Europe.  A 
few  months  since,  a  vessel  arrived  here  with  forty  German  passengers  ; 
apj)lication  was  immediately  made  for  the  admission  oi  Jifteen  of  them 
into  the  almshouse. 

Many  emigrants  com])lain  bitterly  that  false  statements  were  made 
to  them  by  shipping  agents  and  others,  to  induce  them  to  qovhq  to  this 
country.  Multitudes  have  doubtless  been  deceived  in  regard  to  the 
prices  of  labor  and  the  means  of  living  in  this  country.  Many  are 
anxious  to  return  to  Europe,  but  have  not  the  means.  A  considerable 
number  have  returned  from  Boston  during  the  last  year,  assisted,  to  do 
so  by  the  subscription  of  the  wealthy  and  benevolent. 

Whether  Congress  can  do  anything  to  prevent  the  introduction  of 
foreign  paupers  and  criminals,  is  an  important  question  :  one  that  I 
am  incompetent  to  discuss.  It  is  clear  that  State  legislation  is  not  to 
be  relied  on  to  correct  the  evil,  so  long  as  in  some  States  there  may  be 
no  obstacles  interposed  to  the  landing  of  aliens  of  all  descriptions. 
Uniformity  of  State  laws  can  scarcely  be  expected. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  obstacle  that  exists  to  national  legislation  on 
this  subject,  is  the  tact  that  the  discussion  of  it,  in  the  public  papers 
at  least,  is  mixed  with  the  spirit  of  party.  Misre]iresentation,  and 
appeals  to  the  worst  passions,  have  appeared  on  both  sides.  Whole- 
sale assertions  that  emigrants  generally  are  vicious,  squalid  paupers, 
and  criminals,  are  as  far  from  the  truth  on  one  hand,  as  the  declara- 
tion that  emigration  is  "almost  an  nniaixed  hlcssing"  to  the  United 
States  is  on  the  other.  If  we  can  by  any  fair  means  prevent  the  intro- 
duction into  this  country  of  the  thousands  of  ignorant,  dependent 
paupers,  of  felons,  and  radical  disturbers,  (such  as  keep  up  the  mis- 
chief on  the  Canada  frontier,)  it  is  certainly  desirable  to  do  so.  If  a 
stop  could  be  jmt  to  the  false  re})resentations  put  forth  in  England  and 
Ireland  about  the  want  of  laborers,  and  the  prices  of  labor  in  this 
country,  immigration  would  be  less.     Please  excuse  this  hasty  letter. 

With  great  respect,  your  obedient  servant. 

APtTEMAS  SYMONDS. 

Hon.  RicHAKD  Fletcher. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  81 


D. 

From  the  Native  American  Association  of  the  United  States,  in  Wash- 
ington city, 

April  11,  1838. 

Sir  :  The  president  of  this  association,  to  whom  your  inquiries  were 
addressed,  has  directed  me  to  furnish,  in  reply  to  them,  all  the  infor- 
mation that  could  be  collected  from  the  materials  in  our  possession. 

The  great  increase  of  crime  and  pauperism  is  to  be  mainly  attributed 
to  the  unusual  advance  of  our  population  beyond  its  natural  progress ; 
the  judicial  expenses  of  the  country  generally,  and  the  municipal 
€harges  in  towns,  have  heretofore  kept  pace  with  this  increase,  until 
the  burden  has  in  populous  districts  become  fixed  upon  the  property 
holders  as  a  direct  tax.  Besides  this  weight  upon  us  in  a  pecuniary 
way,  we  feel  the  pressure  of  this  strange  tide  upon  our  social  and  do- 
mestic system,  whose  unity  is  impaired  by  throwing  into  it  the  discor- 
dant materials  of  every  variety  of  language,  custom,  nationality,  and 
prejudice.  The  present  generation  of  natives  are,  therefore,  so  segre- 
gated by  these  interpolations  that  even  for  the  general  welfare  of  the 
country  there  could  be  no  perfect  co-operation,  and,  as  regards  tlie 
new  comers,  there  could,  in  the  hour  of  peril  to  our  institutions,  be  no 
confidence. 

We  have  endeavored  in  our  course  to  avoid  any  action  that  would 
wound  tlie  sensibilities  of  those  who  have  pressed  their  consciences  to 
throw  off  the  allegiance  which  nature  and  duty  imposed  to  their  own 
land  when  they  promised  faithfulness  to  this.  We  knew  it  was  but  a 
vain  formula  ;  but  as  the  law  had  tolerated  it,  and  a  long  period  of 
peace,  in  which  there  could  be  no  test  of  its  fallacy,  had  given  it  the 
sanction  of  a  seeming  truth,  we  were  willing  to  confine  ourselves  to 
prospective  dangers,  and  count  upon  all  who  were  citizens,  whether 
naturalized  or  native,  as  interested  with  us  in  the  same  common  cause. 
This  desire,  however,  was  not  appreciated  ;  and  the  temper  of  the 
alien,  though  covered  with  the  protection  of  the  laws,  the  enjoyment 
of  ofiice,  the  rewards  of  party,  and  the  places  of  our  own  people, 
manifested  its  affinities  and  sympathies  for  their  own  countrymen, 
thougli  in  their  distant  home,  and  raised  all  their  foreign  banners  to 
suppress  our  efforts.  The  pride  of  our  people  is  daily  mortified  by 
such  doings  ;  we  are  men,  if  not  awed,  at  least  threatened  in  our  land. 
Our  places  of  profit  and  of  honor  have  been  given  to  the  countrymen 
of  our  enemy.  Men  but  a  few  months  in  the  land  have  been  preferred 
to  exemplary  citizens.  The  archives  of  your  public  dep-irtinents  are 
in  the  custody  of  those  whom  we  should  fear  to  trust  with  arms  in 
war.  Our  poor's  house  in  this  city  is  often  tenanted  by  men  who 
have  made  long  journeys  to  solicit  pensions  for  past  services  to  the 
nation,  while  at  the  same  moment  the  dei)artments  of  the  government 
are  a  great  lazar-liouse  to  receive  and  support  the  alien.  We  invite 
you  to  look  around  you,  in  your  own  committee-rooms,  at  your  public 
buildings,  the  very  walks  of  your  Capitol,  at  every  ramification  of 
public  service  where  profit  is  to  follow,  and  behold  the  incumbent  for- 
H.  Rep.  359 6 


82  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

eigners,  and  then  turn  to  the  rejected  native,  and  ask  whether  it  is 
not  time  that  your  countrymen  should  petition  for  redress. 

These  things  are  adverted  to,  not  for  the  purpose  of  raising  an 
argument,  hut  as  facts  which  your  own  investigation  can  soon  prove. 

"Without  enLirging  upon  these  eviLs,  I  proceed  now  to  answer  your 
inquiry  as  to  the  support  of  the  poor  in  Washington  city. 

The  population  of  the  city  proper  is  about  22,000. 

The  average  number  of  paupers  per  annum,  during  a  period  of  five 
years,  is  195,  or  one  pauper  out  of  every  112  inhabitants. 


Number  admitted  into  the 

Infirmaiy. 

Commited  for  disorderly  conduct 

In  1833     - 

-    197 

- 

-     310 

1834    - 

-     239 

- 

-     306 

1835     - 

-     201 

- 

-     243 

1836    - 

-    170 

- 

-     274 

1837    - 

-     168 

-     252 

975 

1,385 

If  you  add  the  number  admitted  to  that  department  of  the  poor's 
house  approj)riated  as  a  place  of  penitence  or  punishment  for  vagrants 
or  persons  committed  for  disorderly  conducts,  to  the  number  committed 
as  mere  paupers,  then  the  average  number  of  admissions  annually  dur- 
ing a  period  of  five  years,  would  be  -  -     195  paupers. 


277  vagrants. 


472,  or  one  pau- 
per and  vagrant  to  every  46  inhabitants. 

The  average  number  of  resident  paupers  during  ten  years  was  2,125 
Of  foreign  alien  paupers  during  that  time     -  -     1,120 

From  different  States  -  -  -  -  -        934 

2,054 


Total  number  for  ten  years  -  -  -  4,179 

For  the  last  five  months  admitted      -  _  _  _       158 

Non-residents  ______        44 


202 


Of  these,  there  were  53  persons  "  seeking  pensions." 

The  average  number  yearly  under  medical  treatment  for  the  last  five 
years  appears  to  have  been  thirty. 

The  least  average  number  of  persons  daily  in  the  poor's  house 
throughout  the  year  is  79,  which  Avould  make  the  cost  of  keeping 
$1  07  per  week. 

Out  of  those  168  admitted  in  1837  to  the  poor-house  proper,  70 
were  foreigners. 

The  number  admitted  from  May,  1837,  to  February,  1838.  nine 
months,  was  118  ;  of  whom  77  were  males  and  41  females — 40  foreign- 
ers.    Of  the  white  males  admitted,  about  two-thirds  were  foreigners. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  83 

The  number  of  persons  licensed  to  retail  spirituous  liquors  is  200, 
of  whom  90  are  foreigners;  Of  billiard-tables  there  are  five  licensed^, 
two  of  which  are  kept  by  natives,  and  tlirce  by  foreigners. 

The  annual  expense  of  the  poor's  house  is       -  -       $4,490  00 

The  amount  of  taxes  in  1832  upon  real  and  personal 

property  for  corporation  purposes,  was  -        -  -       35,195  13 

The  receipt  for  tavern  licenses  _  _  _         3,792  00 

The  expenditures  for  the  same  year,  for  the  support  of 

the  poor,  infirm,  and  lunatics  -  -  -         3,775  00 

From  this  it  will  be  seen  that  there  is  a  natural  relationship  be- 
tween the  profits  derived  from  the  tavern  licenses  and  the  burden  of 
the  poor,  the  sums  received  for  the  one  having  been  exhausted  in  the 
same  period  of  time  for  the  support  of  the  latter. 

So,  too,  more  than  one-tenth  of  the  receipts  for  taxes  on  real  and 
personal  property  has  been  imposed  for  the  maintenance  of  the  pauper. 

Instead  of  taking  the  last  returns  of  those  in  the  infirmary  as  a 
rule  in  relation  to  the  number  of  foreigners  sustained  by  our  citizens^ 
and  which  shows  that  two-thirds  of  the  whole  number  were  of  that 
class,  let  us  throw  that  aside,  because  it  comprises  only  a  few  months, 
in  which  by  possibility  there  may  have  been  more  than  upon  the  aver- 
age of  a  long  period,  and  take  the  lowest  number  reported  at  any 
time.  • 

This,  then,  would  be  one-fourth;  and,  supposing  that  proportion  of  * 
the  whole  number  to  have  been  foreigners,  it  will  appear  that  we  have 
had  as  a  burden  upon  us,  out  of  474  committals,  148  foreigners,  which, 
at  a  cost  of  $4,490  for  the  whole  poor  and  vagrants,  would  be  $1,122  50 
in  one  year  for  them  ;  which  would  more  than  pay  the  members  of 
both  boards  of  the  city  council  for  the  same  time. 

Supposing  that  two-thirds  of  the  poor  and  vagrants  are  foreigners, 
then  they  are  a  tax  upon  every  individual,  man,  woman,  and  child, 
black  and  white,  bond  and  free,  estimating  the  population  at  22,000^ 
of  13  cents. 

Supposing  them  one-half,  they  are  a  tax  to  each  of  10  cents  ;  one- 
fourth,  a  tax  to  each  inhabitant  of  5  cents.  And  the  paupers  and 
vagrants,  generally,  are  a  charge  upon  every  inhabitant  of  20  cents. 

It  is  sujiposed  there  are  with  us  1,400  voters,  though  that  number 
has  never  been  polled.  And  there  are  1,G00  tax-payers,  residents  and 
non-residents ;  of  these,  about  1,000  are  proprietors  of  real  estate,  and 
600  of  personal  property  only. 

At  this  rate,  the  voters,  after  deducting  one-eighth  for  absent  ones, 
pay  for  supporting  paupers,  yearly,  each  $2  81  ;  and  they  pay  for 
foreign  paupers,  deducting  one-eighth  for  non-resident  tax-payers,  70 
cents,  supposing  they  are  only  one-fourth  of  the  whole  number  of 
paupers. 

The  owners  of  real  estate,  from  whom  three-fourths  of  all  the  taxes 
come,  pay,  per  annum,  for  paupers  generally  each  $3  38;  and  they 
pay  for  the  foreign  paupers  eaph  $1  08,  supposing  them  to  be  one-half 
of  the  whole  number,  and  84  cents  each,  supposing  them  to  be  only 
one-fourth. 

Besides  this,  there  is  a  fixed  population  of  aliens  and  naturalized 
citizens,  dispersed  in  the  various  occupations  of  life,  but  principally 


84  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

confined  to  the  public  offices  and  such  other  contingent  pursuits. 
The  number  of  foreign  mechanics  or  persons  in  settled  occupations  of 
physical  industry  is  small,  but  there  is  a  migratory  species  of  laborers 
who,  by  some  system  in  vogue  with  the  directors  of  the  i)ublic  build- 
ings, who  are  also  foreigners,  are  brought  from  a  distant  place  to 
work,  and  then  return  home  to  spend  their  earnings.  This  course, 
which  seems  to  have  been  countenanced  by  others  in  authority,  has 
produced  great  heart-burnings. 

The  American  mechanics  are  daily  complaining  of  preferences  to 
these  aliens,  and,  if  "  coming  events  cast  their  shadows  before,"  the 
banners  displayed  by  your  countrymen  upon  tlie  public  buildings  now 
in  progress  here,  with  the  motto  "we  strike  for  our  country,"  may 
indicate  how  wise  it  will  be  for  legislators  to  appease  the  wrath  by 
speedily  removing  the  cause. 

The  number  of  passengers  who  arrived  in  New  York  in  183G  was 
80,952,  of  whom  only  4,013  were  born  in  the  United  States. 

The  increase  of  immigrants  into  that  city  alone  in  eight  years  has 
been  fourfold. 

In  1829,  there  were    -  -  _  _  _  _     15,064 

In  1836  -------     60,541 

Tlie  arrivals  from  one  port,  namely,  from  Cork,  in  1836,  were 
4,993  ;  and  the  quarterly  returns  from  1st  January  to  27th  July, 
•1837;  show  that  the  increase  at  that  port  over  the  last  year  was  in  the 
ratio  of  four  to^ne  ;  the  number  within  the  first  quarter  having  been 
34,554. 

The  poor  in  the  alms-houses  in  1836  were — 
In  Boston  596  Americans,  673  foreigners. 
In  Phihidel[)hia  1,505  Americans,  1,266  foreigners. 

Tlie  report  of  the  board  of  aldermen  of  the  city  of  New  York,  of 
12th  June,  1837,  states  that  the  paupers  in  the  almshouse  were  3,074, 
of  whom  three-fourths  were  foreigners.  That  out  of  1,200  persons 
admitted  into  the  almshouse  at  Bellevue,  982  were  aliens.  The  an- 
nual report,  dated  29th  March,  1837,  shows  that  6,874  foreigners 
were  supported  or  relieved  there  during  the  past  year.  The  mayor  of 
New  York,  in  a  communication  to  the  common  council,  states  that 
"  nearly  2,000  (emigrants)  arrive  each  week,  and  it  is  not  likely  many 
months  will  elapse  before  the  number  per  week  will  be  3,000.  Our 
streets  are  filled  with  the  wandering  crowds  of  these  passengers,  clus- 
tering in  our  city,  unaccustomed  to  our  climate,  without  money,  with- 
out employment,  without  friends,  (many  not  speaking  our  language,) 
and  without  any  dependence  for  food,  raiment,  or  fireside.  What  is 
to  become  of  them  ?  is  a  question  of  serious  import.  Our  whole  alms- 
house department  is  so  full  that  no  more  can  be  received  there  without 
manifest  hazard  to  the  health  of  every  inmate.  Petitions,  signed  by 
hundreds,  asking  for  v.-ork,  are  presented  in  vain.  Private  associa- 
tion.s  for  relief  are  almost  wholly  without  funds.  Thousands  must 
therefore  wander  to  and  fro,  filling  every  part  of  our  once  happy  land 
with  squallid  poverty  and  profligacy. 

The  tax  lor  the  relief  of  ]'an])ers  in  New  York  has  increased  fifty 
per  C3nt.  in  six  years,  as  in  1830  the  total  expense  was  $246,752  90^ 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS.  85 

while,  in  ISoG,  it  had  augmented  to  $396,100  05.  But  if  you  take 
the  general  amount  of  support  it  will  he  found  to  have  more  than 
doubled  itself  in  seven  years. 

The  revenue  of  the  Champlain  canal^  which  is  64  miles  long,  and 
the  next  largest  in  the  State,  is  annually  about  $132,000  ;  so  that 
it  would  take  the  gross  receipts  of  the  tolls  of  this  canal  for  three  years 
to  support  the  poor  of  the  State  for  one  year. 

The  amount  expended  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  for  one  year 
for  the  poor^  would  pay  one  half  of  the  yearly  charge  of  the  whole 
legislative,  executive,  and  judiciary  departments  of  the  general  gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States,  besides  the  costs  of  the  territorial  gov- 
ernments, the  officers  of  the  mint,  and  public  surveyors.  The  annual 
outlay  for  paupers  in  the  United  States  Avould  have  jjaid  the  appropri- 
ations made  by  Congress  in  1833  for  all  diplomatic  purposes  and  for- 
eign intercourse  three  times  over  ;  and  it  would,  witliin  half  a  million, 
have  sustained  the  whole  charges  of  the  navy,  including  the  gradual 
improvements,  buildings,  and  rebuilding  of  frigates,  subsistence,  and 
all  other  items  for  that  year. 

It  would,  within  a  fraction,  have  satisfied  all  the  revolutionary  pen- 
sions under  the  act  of  June,  1832  ;  and  it  would  have  paid  the  pensions 
granted  to  widows-  and  orphans  under  the  military  establishment  up 
to  1833,  for  Jive  hundred  years. 

The  public  contributions  by  tax  throughout  the  different  States  would 
sustain  the  entire  charges  of  the  civil  list  of  the  United  ptates,  and 
leave  a  balance  for  a  sinking  fund,  which,  in  ten  years,  would  pay  a 
national  debt  of  fifteen  millions  of  dollars. 

In  contrasting  the  expense  oi  foreign  paupers  already  among  us  as 
an  interminable  burden,  with  the  expense  of  public  schools,  it  will 
be  found  that  the  former  very  considerably  exceeds  that  of  the  latter. 
In  Pennsylvania,  the  new  law  of  1836  authorizes  each  county  to  de- 
termine by  its  votes  "  whether  it  will  entitle  itself  to  the  aid  of  the 
public  fund,  by  assuming  a  certain  portion  of  the  expense."  And  the 
scholars  alread}"  taught  in  the  common  schools  under  that  system  in 
the  State  was,  in  1837,  139,604,  and  in  the  Philadelphia  schools 
11,234.  The  whole  cost  was  $132,000,  while  the  charge  for  foreign 
paupers  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  alone,  supposing  that  1,515,  as  re- 
ported, was  the  full  number,  would  be,  at  $50  per  annum  each, 
$75,*750,  or  more  than  half  as  much  as  the  whole  cost  of  public  in- 
struction throughout  the  entire  State.  But  if  you  contrast  the  actual 
cost  of  the  foreign  paupers  in  Philadelphia,  as  supplied  by  the  regular 
institutions,  to  say  nothing  of  hundreds  who  subsist  upon  the  contin- 
gent bounty  of  individuals,  with  the  expense  of  the  11,234  scholars 
taught  at  the  common  Schools  in  that  city,  it  will  appear  that  the 
former  impose  a  regular  tax  per  annum  of  |75,V50,  while  the  poor 
scholars  are  instructed  for  $11,000  ;  or,  in  other  words,  that  the  city 
of  Philadelphia  pays  seven  times  more  as  a  regular  tax  to  support 
the  idle  and  profligate  of  other  countries,  than  she  does  to  instruct  her 
own  sons  in  the  elements  of  an  ordinary  education. 

The  great  influence  of  aliens  in  that  State,  who  look  with  jealousy 
upon  the  school  fund  as  so  much  taken  from  the  general  stock  which 
would  otherwise  be  used  for  their  comfort,   has  already  manifested 


8Q  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

itself  in  immediate  connexion  with  this  subject ;  and  although  it  would 
scarcely  be  believed  that  in  this  age  of  "  improvement"  there  could 
be  any  so  badly  bold  or  so  rudely  ignorant  as  to  wish  to  silence  the 
tutor,  or  see  the  young  mind  run  to  wild  maturity  in  ignorance  and 
depravity,  still  it  is  in  proof  that  in  the  very  heart  of  our  country, 
in  the  key-stone  State  of  the  Union,  there  is  a  horde  of  Vandals  that 
would  consummate  this  curse  upon  us,  and  link  it  to  our  posterity. 

The  following  rejjort  to  the  legislature  of  that  State,  in  relation  to 
this  act,  and  its  reception  by  the  people,  was  made  by  Mr.  Kerr,  of 
Allegany,  on  the  ITth  March,  1835. 

You  will  be  able  to  judge  from  this,  as  to  what  land  of  liberty  and 
instruction,  or  of  bondage,  political  and  mental,  these  actors  belonged. 

"  The  committee  appointed  to  rej)ort  to  the  House  the  number  of 
petitioners  in  each  county  of  the  commonwealth  praying  for  the  re- 
peal, and  the  number  i)raying  for  a  modification  of  the  school  law, 
and  the  number  remonstrating  against  said  repeal  ;  and^  also,  how 
many  of  said  petitioners  signed  by  making  their  mark,  and  how  many 
names  to  the  petitions  were  written  by  other  hands  than  the  petition- 
ers', report: 

"  That  although  the  number  who  have  petitioned  for  the  repeal  is 
deplorably  large,  yet  it  is  but  a  small  minority  of  the  whole  number 
of  voters  in  the  commonwealth,  to  wit,  about  32,000.  Those  who  ask 
for  a  modification  are  only  2,084  ;  those  Avho  have  deemed  it  necessary 
to  remonstrate  against  the  repeal,  2,575.  The  committee  were  pained 
to  find  ardong  those  who  deem  a  general  system  of  education  unneces- 
sary and  ask  for  its  reiieal,  sixty-six  who  are  unable  to  write  their  own 
names,  and  who  attached  their  signatures  by  making  their  marks  ;  and, 
according  to  the  best  conclusion  to  which  the  committee  could  arrive, 
more  than  ten  out  of  every  hundred  of  the  petitioners'  names  ap2)ear 
to  be  written  by  other  hands  than  their  own.  Whether  this  arose 
from  inability  to  write  their  own  names,  the  committee  do  not  feel 
themselves  called  to  determine.  The  committee  would  further  re- 
mark, that  in  most  of  the  petitions  not  more  than  ^five  names  out  of 
every  luindred  are  written  in  English  ;  and  the  great  mass  of  them  are 
so  illegibly  written  as  to  afibrd  the  strongest  evidence  of  the  deplorable 
disregard  so  long  paid  by  the  legislature  to  the  constitutional  injunc- 
tion to  establish  a  general  system  of  education." 

In  New  York,  532,167  children  were  instructed  at  a  cost  per  annum 
of  $1,235,256  02,  of  which  only  $313,376  91,  or  about  one-fourth, 
was  defrayed  from  tlie  public  money  ;  while  for  the  same  year  the 
maintenance  of  her  paupers  in  the  city  alone  was  $205,506  63,  or  two- 
thirds  of  the  whole  expense  of  public  education  throughout  the  State. 
If  you  take,  however,  the  amount  of  costs  ^or  schools, 

l^aid  by  public  tax,  for  the  year  1837,  which  was  -  $313,376  91 
And  deduct  it  from  the  cost  of  paupers  that  year,  which 

was      ------  -     396,100  05 


It  will  be  seen  that  pauperism  costs  more  than  educa- 
tion by  _.-._-       82,723  14 

The  population  of  the  State  of  New  York  in  1835  was  2,174,516, 
out  of  which  there  were  82,319  raale  aliens.     The  act  for  taking  the 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  87 

census  omitted  the  female  aliens,  and  hence  they  were  not  enumerated. 
The  number  of  the  latter  class  was  estimated  in  that  year  at  80,018  ; 
making  the  total  aliens  1G2,337,  or  about  one  alien  to  every  thirteen 
native  and  naturalized  citizens  in  the  State. 

The  total  of  aliens  there  in  1825  was  40,430  ;  increase  since  that 
period  three  hundred  ])er  cent. 

It  is  said  by  political  economists  that  idleness  and  pauperism  always 
increase. in  proportion  to  the  means  of  their  ready  maintenance  ;  and 
this  seems  to  be  borne  out  by  the  history  of  mendicity.  In  the  reign 
of  Elizabeth  the  support  of  the  poor  was  so  precarious  from  the  public 
purse,  that  justices  of  the  peace  were  authorized  to  levy  whatever 
assessment  they  might  think  necessary  for  the  relief  of  the  poor. 

The  delegation  of  this  legislative  power  to  the  discretion  of  subordi- 
nate magistrates  augmented  not  only  the  public  burden  but  the  number 
of  the  poor  to  such  an  extent  that  the  weekly  allowance  to  a  pauper 
'^frequently  exceeded  the  ordinary  earnings  of  a  laborer  in  good 
times."  This  administration  of  the  laws,  says  a  writer,  ''has  had 
such  a  tendency  to  debase  the  character  of  the  common  people  of  Eng- 
land, that  in  some  parishes  every  fourth  man  receives  relief." 

The  poor  laws  of  every  country  tend  to  produce  alienation  between 
the  rich  and  the  poor,  rendering  the  poor  thankless  and  the  rich  hard- 
hearted ;  and  are  productive  of  such  mischiefs  in  separating  the  social 
ties,  that  Bishop  Burnet  declares  they  ought  to  be  entirely  abolished. 
Such  had  been  the  effect  of  the  levies  for  supporting  the  poor  under 
the  power  given  to  magistrates  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  that  in  the 
time  of  William  and  Mary  an  appeal  was  made  to  the  moral  sensi- 
bilities and  pride  of  the  beggar,  in  the  form  of  laws,  imposing  badges 
of  shame  upon  their  vocation.  Nothing  has,  however,  stopped  their 
increase,  or  even  kept  the  number  within  reasonable  bounds. 

The  i^oor-rates  in  the  time  of  James  I  were  £665,362  ;  in  a  century 
(1800)  they  were  increased  to  four  millions  of  pounds  sterling ;  and  in 
ffteen  years  more  had  doubled  themselves,  being  then  £8,000,000. 

Various  plans  of  relief  have  been  proposed  in  Parliament,  from  that 
of  work-houses  and  schools  of  industry,  by  Mr.  Pitt,  to  the  nobler 
one  of  moral  education  and  scliolastic  instruction,  by  which  the  lower 
classes  might  so  improve  their  habits  and  emulation  as  to  be  above  the 
degradation  of  charitable  dependence.  But  the}'^  all  failed,  and  the 
parochial  taxes  have  gone  on  continually  increasing  until  the  burden 
in  England  has  become,  both  as  to  this  species  of  population  and  the 
extent  of  means  for  its  support,  so  great,  as  to  be  second  only  in  im- 
portance to  the  great  national  debt. 

The  experience  of  our  country  shows  that  we  have  followed  at  a 
rapid  pace  in  the  footsteps  of  that  older  nation,  for  our  paupers  have 
increased  so  fast  as  to  more  than  double  themselves  in  six  years  in 
many  places. 


Thus, 

in 

New  York- 

— 

In  1830 

tl) 

,e  number  : 

l■elie^ 

'ed 

was 

15,506, 

at 

a  cost 

of  $246,752  90 

1831 

i  i 

15,564 

245,433  21 

1833 

a 

35,774 

295,239  13 

1834 

i( 

32,798 

304,913  21 

1835 

a 

38,362 

323,741  12 

1836 

cc 

37,959 

396,100  05 

88  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

In  New  Hampshire,  in  1800,  the  amount  expended  was  only  $17,000 
on  a  ])Oi)nlation  of  183,858,  of  which  one  in  every  333  was  a  pauper. 
But  in  1820,  with  a  poimlation  of  244,161,  of  which  one  in  every  100 
was  a  i^auper,-  $80,000  was  expended  ;  "so  that,  in  the  course  of 
twenty  years,  the  actual  expense  was  nearly  quintupled,  and  the  pro- 
portion which  the  paupers  hore  to  the  whole  population  had  heen  in- 
creased in  the  ratio  of  more  than  three  to  one." 

In  Massachusetts  the  increase  since  1821,  from  1.34  per  cent.,  has 
been,  up  to  1832,  2.55  per  cent.,  or  nearly  doubled  in  ten  years. 

In  the  district  of  Southwark  and  the  Northern  Liberties  alone,  in 
Philadelphia,  there  were,  in  1810,  1,3^0,  and  in  1820,  2,500,  or  within 
a  Traction  of  an  increase  of  100  per  cent,  in  10  years. 

During  the  war,  when  immigration  was  stopped  for  a  time,  that 
city  began  to  recover  from  her  burden,  and  the  number  fell  down  to 
1,400.  Soon  after  the  termination  of  hostilities  with  England,  it  be- 
gan to  increase  again  as  the  population  flowed  in  from  the  almshouses 
of  other  countries,  until,  in  1822,  it  amounted  to  3,090.  The  popu- 
lation had  increased  in  a  ratio  of  67  per  cent. ,  while  the  poor-rates 
had  risen  nearly  87  per  cent.  In  Philadelphia  and  the  county  alone, 
it  is  said  that  three  millions  of  dollars  have  been  expended  in  the 
shape  of  a  poor  tax  within  25  years. 

It  is  not  possible  to  ascertain  with  precision  the  number  of  paupers 
in  the  country,  as  in  some  of  the  States  there  is  no  tax  for  their  sup- 
port, and  in  many  of  those  that  have  an  assessment  for  that  purpose 
there  is  no  return  of  the  cost  or  the  number. 

The  average  cost  for  maintaining  them  varies  in  different  years  in 
the  different  States,  according  to  the  value  of  provisions.  Thus  in 
Philadelphia,  in  1821,  the  average  weekly  charge  was  70.9  cents, 
while  in  1832  it  was  102  cents. 

In  Massachusetts  the  annual  cost  is  $50,  or  96.1  cents  per  week. 

In  Virginia,  where,  in  the  greater  number  of  the  counties,  the  poor 
are  boarded  out  at  a  rate  agreed  upon  between  the  overseer  and  the 
house-keepers,  or  where  the  pauper  receives  his  yearly  allowance,  and 
makes  his  OAvn  bargain  for  subsistence,  the  annual  cost  is  from  $40  to 
|100,  or  $1  30.30  per  week. 

In  New  York,  the  average  per  year,  in  1830,  was  $37  03,  or  71.11 
cents  per  week. 

In  the  same  State,  in  1836,  it  was  $32  53,  or  62.26  cents  per  week. 

In  order  to  arrive  at  a  tolerably  accurate  view  of  the  number  and 
charge  of  maintenance  throughout  the  United  States,  it  has  been 
thought  best  to  make  a  calculation  for  those  States  from  which  we 
have  no  returns,  by  comparing  the  extent  of  their  population  under 
the  census  of  1830,  with  the  number  in  those  States  which  have  given 
returns ;  and  the  result  is  as  follows  : 

Maine  vvitli  a  population,  in  18.30,  of  399,955,  shows 

by  her  official  statement  in  1835    ■  -  -     2,480  paupers,  at  a  cost  of  $66,188  00 

New  Hampshire,  population  269,328  -  -     1,674        do  do  75,330  00 

Vermont,   returns  not  given  in  ;  there   should  be 

about  .  -  -  -  -     1,800        do 

But  the  report  of  the  cost  is  put  at  only  -  100,000  00 

Alassachusetts,  only  two-thirds   of  the  towns  heard 

from  in  1835,  there  were     -  -  -  -     5,580        do  do         150,345  46 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 


89 


607    paupers,  at  a  cost  of  $27,315  00 
1,840        do 
37,959        do  do        396,100  05 


-  1,989 

do 

do 

89,505  00 

-  8,127 

do 

do 

365,715  00 

4U7 

do 

do 

18,315  00 

-  2,510 

do 

do 

112,950  00 

-  2,222 

do 

do 

100,000  00 

-  4,575 

do 

do 

205,875  00 

-  1,800 

do 

do 

81,000  00 

-  3,240 

do 

do 

145,800  00 

-  3,603 

do 

do 

162,135  00 

-  4,227 

do 

do 

190,215  00 

-  4,265 

do 

do 

191,925  00 

-  5,814 

do 

do 

261,670  00 

-  1,337 

do 

do 

60,165  00 

-   847 

do 

do 

38,115  00 

-  1,919 

do 

do 

86,355  00 

-  2,126 

do 

do 

95,670  00 

-   976 

do 

do 

43,920  00 

-   870 

do 

do 

39,150  00 

188 

do 

do 

8,460  00 

196 

do 
do 

do 
do 

8,820  00 

103,178 

3,121,038  51 

Of  these  1,192  were  foreisrners. 
Rhode  Island,  population  97,19!) 
Connecticut,  population  297,663 
New  York,  number  actually  relieved  in  1P35 

Though  her  proportion  would  be  only  11,145 
New  Jersey,  population  320,623 
Pennsylvania  .... 

Delaware,  population  76,748 
Maryland,  population  447,040 
Virginia,  at  J45  each  .  -  . 

North  Carolina  -  .  .  . 

Vermont  ..... 

Georgia  ..... 

South  Carolina  -  .  -  - 

Tennessee  ..... 
Kentucky  ..... 
Ohio  ..... 

Louisiana  ..... 
Mississippi  ..... 
Alabama  ..... 

Indiana  ..... 

Illinois  ..... 

Missouri  ..... 

Arkansas  ..... 
Michjffan         ..... 


This  calculation  is,  of  course,  only  hypothetical,  because  in  some  of 
the  States  there  are  no  returns,  and  in  others  no  poor-houses,  but  it  is 
nevertheless  correct  as  an  aggregate;  for,  although  Ohio  may  not 
have,  as  the  table  gives  her,  5,814  paupers,  because  she  is  an  agricul- 
tural State^  with  an  industrious  northern  people,  and  no  slavery,  still 
the  dilFerence  is  made  up  in  Louisiana_,  which  though  a  richer  State, 
with  nominally  no  poor-houses,  and  is  put  down  in  this  scale  of  quotas 
as  having  only  1,337,  nevertheless  supports,  as  appears  by  actual 
statements,  9,000  persons  in  the  charity  hospital  of  one  city,  (New 
Orleans.)  So,  too,  in  Vermont:  the  number  of  paupers  is  not  given, 
but  the  annual  charges  are,  amounting  to  $100,000  ;  and  this,  sup- 
posing $45  to  be  the  sum  required  for  the  support  of  each,  would  show 
that  she  has  2,222  paupers,  while  the  table  of  proportions  gives  her 
only  1,800,  or  422  less  than  she  really  supports. 

New  York,  with  a  population,  in  1830,  of  1,918,608,  ought  to  have 
only  11,145  paupers;  but  her  public  accounts  exhibit  more  than  three- 
fold the  number,  supplied  at  an  exj^ense  of  more  than  one-third  of  a 
million  of  dollars  annually. 

Take  the  table,  therefore,  in  the  general,  and  it  gives  the  fair  num- 
ber throughout  the  United  States. 

In  1828,  the  number  of  ])ersons  committed  upon  criminal  charges 


in  England  and  Wales,  was 

In  1829  - 

In  1830  - 

In  1831  - 

In  1832  - 

In  1833  - 

In  1834  - 


16,564 
18,675 
18,107 
19,647 
20,829 
20,072 
22,451 


^0  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

The  average  number  condemned  to  death  in  England  and  Wales, 
for  seven  years,  was  about  -  _  _  _  1,192 

In  Ireland,  taking  as  a  criterion  the  minimum  number, 
which  was,  in  1834  -  -  -  -  -  197 


In  all  -----  -  1,389 

While  in  the  United  States  there  were — 

In  Maine,  in  15  years      -----  2 

In  Vermont,  in  41  years  -  _  _  _  3 

In  Ehode  Island,  in  44  years      -  _  _  _  5 

In  Massachusetts,  in  40  years      -  -  -  -  40 

In  Pennsylvania,  in  41  years      -  -  -  -  41 

or  two  per  annum  out  of  the  five  States,  (of  which  14  were  for  piracies 

or  murders  on  the  high  seas,)  and  then  allow  one  in  each  State  per 

annum  for  the  remaining  19  States,  or  say  one  per  annum  for  the 

whole  24  States,  (at  the  time,  1834,)  which  is  a  high  allowance,  and 

beyond  the  fact,  but  made  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  even  numbers^ 

and  then  the  whole  number  executed  with  us  would  be  24  per  annum ; 

so  that  the  proportion  of  crimes  deserving  of  death,  committed  in 

Great  Britain,  is  59  times  greater  than  in  the  United  States. 

If  200,000  emigrants  come  to  this  country  annually,  and  only 
150,000  from  Grreat  Britain,  one-third  of  whom  are  respectable,  and 
among  the  rest  are  included  only  one  half  of  her  yearly  floating 
criminals,  and  the  balance  paupers,  then  we  shall  have  added  to  our 
own  stock  of  citizens  yearly   -        -        -         -         73,106  paupers, 

50,000  respectable, 
and  26,894  offenders, 
besides  a  corresponding  proportion  from  other  countries. 

No  one  can  doubt,  therefore,  that  the  United  States  are  looked  to  as 
a  nearer  and  cheaper  prison-house  than  New  South  Wales. 

It  has  long  since  been  foreseen  in  England  that  the  United  States 
would  furnish  not  only  the  best  asylum,  according  to  the  notions  of 
that  people  as  regards  our  fitness  for  such  associations,  but  the 
cheapest  mode  by  which  that  government  could  free  themselves  from 
the  burden  of  mendicity. 

Accordinglv,  in  1832,  instructions  were  framed  bv  the  central  board 
of  poor-law  commissioners,  and  directed  to  all  assistants;  which  con- 
tain a  special  article  upon  this  point. 

Article  V. 

EMIGRATION. 

''The  assistant  commissioner  will,  therefore,  pay  particular  atten- 
tion to  emigration.  He  will  endeavor  to  ascertain  all  the  facts  con- 
nected with  every  case  in  which  an  emigration  has  been  efiected,  and 
its  influence  on  the  rates  of  the  parish,  and  on  the  wages  and  charac- 
ter of  the  remaining  laborers.  He  will  inquire  what  sort  of  persons 
were  sent  out,  and  hoAV  many,  and  of  what  character,  and  witliin  what 
period,  have  returned.  Where  no  such  attempt  has  been  made,  he 
will  ascertain  whether  the  omission  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  absence 
of  a  redundant  population,  (and  if  so,  how  that  absence  is  to  be  ac- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  91 

counted  for,)  or  to  any,  and  what  difficulties  or  objections  on  the  part 
of  the  rate-jiayers  or  of  the  laborers.  And  he  will  collect  facts  and 
opinions  as  to  the  propriety  of  an  enactment  enabling  any  and  what 
majority,  in  number  and  value,  of  the  rate-payers,  with  or  without  the 
concurrence  of  any  and  what  majority,  in  number  and  value,  of  the 
proprietors,  to  raise  money  for  emigration,  in  what,  if  any  definite 
proportion  to  the  rental  or  rates,  and  as  to  the  period  within  which 
such  money  should  be  repaid,  and  the  portion,  if  any,  which  should 
be  paid  by  the  proprietors." 

The  report  from  one  of  the  towns,  acting  in  accordance  with  the 
directions  of  this  particular  section,  uses  this  language : 

"Emigration. — Many  vessels  sail  from  this  port  to  New  York  with 
emigrants,  and  some  American  vessels  have  put  in  for  the  same  pur- 
pose ;  four  families  have  been  sent  out  by  the  imrish,  and  are  domg  well; 
the  expense  was  paid  at  once  out  of  the  rates,  and  the  cost  of  one  large 
family  was  saved  in  two  years." 

This  return  corroborates  the  suggestion  before  made,  that  the  whole 
cost  of  transjiortation  of  all  the  poor  of  England_,  as  compared  with 
the  cost  of  maintenance,  might  be  saved  in  two  years. 

No  one  who  looks  at  the  multiplication  of  this  evil  in  our  country 
since  1790  can  suppose  that  Eurojie  is  idle  in  this  matter.  And  no 
one  who  is  disposed  to  do  justice  to  the  natural  industry  of  our  own 
people  can  suppose  that  the  paupers  could  have  increased  from  29,166 
in  1815,  to  103,178  in  1830,  without  grtat  aid  from  foreign  countries. 

The  people  of  the  United  States  cannot  imagine  the  degraded  state 
of  paupers,  their  ignorance,  and  immediate  connexion  with  crime  in 
Europe,  or  else  they  would  pronounce  them  not  merely  persons  not 
contemplated  by  our  laws  as  worthy  of  citizenship,  but  as  lepers,  whose 
presence  would  contaminate  society,  and  whose  deeds  spread  terror 
among  the  good.  Pauperism  in  Europe  is  not,  as  with  us,  mere  pov- 
erty, which  the  disabled  or  the  imprudent,  or  even  the  unfortunate 
may  feel ;  but  it  is  looked  upon  as  a  species  of  property  which  indi- 
viduals have  in  the  funds  of  the  rich,  and  which  is  a  transmissible  or 
inheritable  right  that  descends  from  age  to  posterity,  until  in  whole 
families,  the  very  history  of  any  otlier  occupation  is  lost.  It  is  not  a 
state  of  society  founded  upon  the  axiom  that  a  community  is  bound  to 
support  those  whom  Providence  has  disabled  from  adding  to  the  gen- 
eral stock;  but  it  is  an  artificial  system,  which  has  grown  up  from 
mistaken  benevolence,  and  has  at  length  become  licentious  by  its 
strength,  and  irrisistible  by  the  ease  with  which  it  has  continued  to 
enforce  its  demands  upon  a  willing  public. 

Mr.  Chadwick,  in  his  report  on  this  subject,  says:  "There  is  no 
hope  of  dispauperizing  any  of  them  with  the  present  generation." 
We  have  cases  of  three  generations  of  paupers. 

Formerly  the  system  was  so  encouraged  that  there  seems  to  have 
been  no  other  plan  left  in  the  wisdom  of  the  rich,  than  to  make  a  new 
rule  in  ethics  by  almost  inviting  crime — to  be  punished  by  small  pen- 
alties in  a  distant  land,  (Botany  Bay,)  where  the  support  of  the  con- 
vict should  be  better  than  that  of  the  pauper  at  home.  In  this  way 
thousands  have  been  induced  to  change  condition;  and  there  is,  by 


92  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

this  mistaken  legislation,  a  continual  temptation  kept  up  between  the 
pride  and  wants  of  the  poor  laborer  to  forego  the  scanty  supply  of  his 
indei)endent  toil,  to  live  better  in  the  degraded  condition  of  a  pauper, 
or  still  better  when  stigmatized  as  a  felon.  The  graduated  scale  of 
supply,  collected  from  official  returns,  shows  this  state: 

The  independent  laborer  is  enabled  to  get  of  solid  food  per  week 
only  122  ounces. 

The  soldier,  by  law,  168  ounces. 

The  able-bodied  pauper  is  furnished  with  151  ounces. 

The  suspected  thief  receives  from  government  181  to  203  ounces. 

The  convicted  thief,  239  ounces. 

The  transported  thief,  330  ounces. 

The  whole  history  of  pauperism  in  England  shows  that  there  is  so 
immediate  a  connexion  between  that  and  crime,  that  the  most  chari- 
table can  only  make  a  shade  of  discrimination.  The  Eev.  Mr.  Bishop, 
in  his  report  from  the  city  of  Oxford,  says  that,  "'upon  investigation, 
in  seven  cases  out  of  ten  of  paupers,  they  are  idle  or  drunken,  abusive 
or  thieving." 

If  such  is  the  fact,  (and  the  various  examinations  of  committees, 
reverend  clergy,  and  overseers  proclaim  it,)  then  it  is  easy  for  us  to 
put  a  proper  estimate  upon  those  who  are  landed  among  us  in  the 
Atlantic  cities,  day  after  day,  to  practice  their  old  vices  with  fresh 
vigor,  and  in  wider  fields  of  profit,  while  they  indoctrinate  the  youth 
of  our  country  with  their  own  corruptions  ;  and  in  fastening  upon  us 
the  burden  as  well  as  the  cur*  of  a  permanent  and  national  pauperism, 
acquire  the  same  political  rights  that  the  most  exemplary,  the  most 
virtuous,  and  the  most  patriotic  of  our  own  countrymen  enjoy. 

That  you  may  judge  how  systematically  pauperism  is  conducted  in 
England  by  the  individual  to  suit  his  own  idleness  and  profligacy,  and 
may  likewise  say  whether  family  habits,  prejudices,  and  ideas  of  rela- 
tive rights  acquired  by  such  a  people  can  be  changed,  or  are  suited  to 
the  condition  of  American  citizens  when  the  professors  of  them  remove 
to  this  country,  I  extract  the  following.  It  is  a  statement  from  actual 
observation,  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stone,  of  Christ  Church,  Spitalfields,  as 
exemplified  in  his  own  parish. 

"  A  young  weaver  of  twenty-two  marries  a  servant  girl  of  nineteen, 
and  the  consequence  is,  the  prospect  of  a  family.  We  should  presume, 
under  ordinary  circumstances,  that  they  would  regard  such  a  prospect 
with  some  anxiety  ;  that  they  would  calculate  upon  the  expenses  of 
an  accouchment,  and  prepare  for  them  in  the  interval  by  strict  economy 
and  unremitting  industry.  No  such  thing.  It  is  the  good  fortune  of 
our  couple  to  live  in  the  district  of  Spitalfields,  and  it  is  impossible  to 
live  there  without  witnessing  the  exertions  of  many  charitable  associa- 
tions. To  these,  therefore,  they  naturally  look  for  assistance  on  every 
occasion. 

"  They  are  visited  periodically  by  a  member  of  the  'District  Visit- 
ing Society.'  It  is  the  object  of  this  society  to  inquire  into  the  condi- 
tion of  the  poor,  to  give  them  religious  advice,  and  occasional  temporal 
relief,  and  to  j^ut  them  in  the  ivay  of  obtaining  the  assistance  of  other 
charitable  institutions.  To  the  visitor  of  this  institution  the  wife  makes 
known  her  situation,  and  states  her  inability  to  meet  the  expense  of 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  93 

an  accoucheur.  The  consequence  is,  that  from  Jwn,  through  Ids  recom- 
mendation, or  under  Ms  directions,  she  obtains  a  ticket  either  for  the 
Lying-in  Hospital  or  for  the  Itoyal  Maternity  Society.  By  the  former 
of  these  charities  she  is  provided  with  gratuitous  board,  lodging, 
medical  attendance,  churching,  registry  of  her  child's  baj^tism,  &c.. 
By  tlie  latter,  she  is  accommodated  with  the  gratuitous  services  of  a 
midwife  to  deliver  her  at  her  own  home. 

"  Delivered  of  her  child  at  the  cost  of  the  ^  Royal  Maternity  Society,' 
she  is  left  by  the  midwife ;  but  then  she  requires  a  nurse,  and  for  a 
nurse,  of  course,  she  is  unable  to  pay  herself.  A  little  exertion,  how- 
ever, gets  over  this  difficulty ;  she  sends  to  the  district  visitor,  to  the 
minister,  or  to  some  other  charitahlc  parishioner,  and  by  their  interest 
with  the  parish  queers,  she  has,  at  last,  a  nurse  sent  to  her  from  the 
tvorkhouse.  But  still  she  has  many  wants,  and  these,  too,  she  is  un- 
able to  supi)ly  at  her  own  expense.  She  requires  blankets,  bed  and 
body  linen  for  herself,  and  baby  linen  for  her  infant.  With  these  she 
is  furnished  by  another  chai'itable  institution.  Soon  after  her  marriage 
she  had  heard  one  of  her  neighbors  say  that  she  had  been  favored  in 
no  less  than^^ye  successive  confinements  with  the  loan  of  the  '  box  of 
linen'  for  herself,  and  during  her  confinement  she  receives  occasional 
visits  and  pecuniary  relief  from  a  female  visitor  of  the  charity.  By 
her  she  is  kindly  attended  to,  and  through  her,  or  the  district  visitor, 
she  is  provided,  in  case  of  fever  or  other  illness,  with  the  gratuitous 
services  of  the  parish  apothecary,  or  of  some  other  charitable  medical 
p)ractitioner  in  the  district. 

"  At  the  end  of  the  month  she  goes,  ptro  forma,  to  be  churched,  and 
though,  perhaps,  the  best  dressed  female  of  the  party,  she  claims  ex- 
emption from  any  pecuniary  offering,  by  virtue  of  a  printed  ticket  to 
that  effect,  put  into  her  hands  by  the  midwife  of  the  '  Koyal  Maternity 
Society.' 

''  The  child  thus  introduced  into  the  world  is  not  worse  provided  for 
than  his  parents.  Of  course  he  requires  vaccination,  or,  in  case  of 
neglect,  he  takes  the  'small-pox.'  In  either  case  he  is  sent  to  the 
'  Hospital  for  the  Casual  Small-pox  and  for  Vaccination,'  and  by  this 
means  costs  his  parents  nothing. 

'•He  has  the  'measles,'  the  'whooping-cough,'  and  other  morbid 
aftections  peculiar  to  childhood.  In  all  these  instances  he  has  the 
benefit  of  the  '  City  Institution  for  Diseases  of  Children.' 

"  Indeed,  from  his  birth  to  his  death,  he  may  command  any  medi- 
cal treatment.  If  his  father  is  a  Welshman,  he  applies  to  the  '  Welsh 
Dispensary;'  if  not,  or  he  prefers  another,  he  has  the  .'Tower  Ham- 
lets Universal  Dispensary,'  the  'London  Dispensary,'  and  the  '  City 
of  London  Dispensary.'  In  case  of  fever,  he  is  sent  to  the  'Fever 
Hospital.'  For  a  broken  limb,  or  any  sudden  or  acute  disorder,  he  is 
admitted  into  the  'London'  or  other  'public  hospital.'  For  a  rash, 
or  any  specific  disease  of  the  skin  or  ear,  he  is  cured  at  the  '  London 
Dispensary;'  and,  for  all  morbid  affections  of  the  eye,  he  goes  either 
to  the  same  charity  or  to  the  'London  Ophthalmic  Infirmary.'  In 
case  of  rupture,  he  his  a  ticket  for  the  'Rupture  Society,'  or  for  the 
•^  City  of  London  Truss  Society.'  For  a  pulmonary  complaint,  he  at- 
tends the  '  Infirmary  for  Asthma,  Consumption,  and  other  Diseases  of 


94  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

the  Lungs ;'  and  for  scrofula,  or  any  other  disease  which  may  require 
sea-bathing,  he  is  sent  to  the  '  Royal  Sea-bathing  Infirmary,'  at  Mar- 
gate. In  some  of  these  medical  institutions,  too,  he  has  the  extra 
advantage  of  board,  lodging,  and  other  accommodations. 

"  By  the  time  the  child  is  eighteen  months  or  two  years  old,  it  be- 
comes convenient  to  his  mother  to  'get  him  out  of  the  way."  for  this 
purpose  he  is  sent  to  the  ''infant  school,'  and  in  this  seminary  enters 
upon  another  wide  field  of  eleemosynary  immunities. 

"^By  the  age  of  six  he  quits  the  '  infant  school,'  and  has  before  him 
an  ample  choice  of  schools  of  a  higher  class.  He  may  attend  the  '  Lan- 
casterian  school'  for  two  pence  a  week,  and  the  '  National '  for  one 
penny,  or  for  nothing.  His  parents  naturally  enough  prefer  the  latter 
school;  it  maybe  less  liberal  in  principle,  but  it  is  lower  in  price.  In 
some  instances,  too,  it  is  connected  Avith  a  cheap  clothing  society;  in 
others,  '  it  provides  clothing'  itself  to  a  limited  number  of  children  ; 
and  in  others,  again,  it  recommends  its  scholars  to  the  governors  of  a 
more  richly  endowed  '  clothing  charity  school.'  To  be  sure  these  are 
only  collateral  advantages.  But  it  is,  perhaps,  excusable  in  a  parent, 
delivered  by  the  'Royal  Maternity  Society,'  to  value  these  above  any 
of  the  more  obvious  and  legitimate  benefits  to  be  derived  from  a  sys- 
tem of  education. 

"  A  j)arent  of  this  kind,  however,  has  hardly  done  justice  to  herself 
or  to  her  child  till  she  has  succeeded  in  getting  him  admitted  into  a 
school  where  he  will  be  immediately  and  permanently  clothed.  This 
advantage  is  to  be  found  in  the  'Protestant  Dissenters,'  in  the  'Paro- 
chial," or  in  the  'Ward  Charity  School;'  and  she  secures  him  a  pre- 
sentation to  one  of  these,  either  by  a  recommendation  from  the 
'  National  school,'  by  the  spontaneous  offer  of  her  husband's  employer, 
or  bvher  own  importunate  applications  at  the  door  of  some  other  sub- 
scriber. It  is  true,  some  few  industrious  and  careful  parents  in  the 
neighborhood  object  to  putting  their  children  into  these  charity 
schools.  With  more  independence  than  wisdom,  they  revolt  at  the 
idea  of  seeing  their  children  Avalk  the  streets  for  several  years  in  a 
livery  which  degrades  them,  by  marking  them  out,  like  the  'parish 
paupers'  of  former  days,  as  the  objects  of  common  charity.  But  the 
parent  in  question  has  no  such  scruple  ;  she  has  tasted  the  sweets, 
and  therefore  never  feels  the  degradation  of  charity.  She  is  saved  the 
expense  of  clothing  her  own  child  herself,  and  she  observes  that  almost 
all  her  poor  neighbors,  like  the  dog  in  the  fable,  have  come  to  think 
what  is  really  disreputable  to  be  a  badge  of  distinction.  She  knows, 
too,  that  most  of  the  '  gentlefolks'  who  support  these  charities,  openly 
proclaim  (oh  monstrous  absurdity !)  that  they  were  more  especially 
designed  for  an  '  aristocracy  among  the  poor,' 

"  It  is  possible  that  she  may  not  succeed  in  getting  her  child  into  a 
'  clothing  charity  school ;'  it  is  more  than  possible,  too,  that  she  may  find 
a  more  profitable  employment  for  him  than  attendance  at  the  '  National;' 
she  may  keep  him  at  homo  all  the  Aveek  to  help  her  nurse  her  fourth 
and  fifth  l)abies,  or  she  may  earn  a  few  pence  by  sending  him  out  as 
an  errand-boy.  Yet,  even  under  these  circumstances,  she  does  not 
necessarilv  forego  the  means  ot^  srettiner  him  an  education  or  a  suit  of 
clothes  for  nothing;  even  then  she  can  send  him  to  one  of  the  innu- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  95 

meraLle  '  Sunday  schools'  in  the  neighborhood,  and  for  clothing  she 
can  apply  to  the  '  Educational  Clothing  Society.'  The  object  of  this 
society  is  the  lending  of  clothing  to  enable  distressed  children  to  attend 
Sunday  schools.  Only^  then,  let  her  child  be  a  distressed  one,  and 
he  is  provided  by  the  '  Educational  Clothing  Society '  with  a  suit  of 
clothes,  which  he  wears  all  the  Sundays  of  one  year,  and  in  case  of 
past  regular  attendance  at  school,  all  the  week-days  of  the  next.  The 
Sundays  of  the  second  year  he  begins  Avith  a  new  suit  of  clothes  as 
before. 

''  The  probability,  however,  is  that  by  the  time  the  boy  is  eight  or 
nine  years  old  his  mother  does  succeed  in  procuring  his  admission  into 
the  '  Clothing  Charity  School,'  and  there  is  the  same  probability  that 
she  Avill  continue  him  in  it.  She  has  strong  reasons  for  so  doing;  for 
she  knows  that  he  will  not  only  be  clothed  and  educated  at  the  expense 
•  of  the  chco-ifj/,  but  that  when  he  is  fourteen — that  is,  when  he  has  re- 
mained five  or  six  years  in  the  school — he  will  be  apprenticed  by  it  to 
some  tradesman,  with  co  fee,  varying  in  the  different  schools  from  £2 
to  £5.       • 

"  At  fourteen,  accordingly,  the  boy  is  put  apprentice  by  the  charity 
to  a  weaver,  and  at  the  expiration  of  the  usual  term  he  begins  work 
as  a  journeyman.  He  has  hardl}"  done  so  before  he  proposes  to  marry 
a  girl  about  his  own  age.  He  is  aware,  indeed^  that  there  are  difh- 
cuities  in  the  way  of  their  union,  and  that,  even  on  the  most  favorable 
supposition,  their  prospects  in  life  cannot  be  considered  flattering. 
He  has  saved  no  money  himself,  and  his  intended  is  equally  unpre- 
pared for  the  expenses  of  an  establishment.  He  knows  that,  working 
early  and  late^  he  can  earn  no  more  than  10s.  a  week ;  that  in  case  of 
sickness,  or  the  failure  of  employment,  he  may  frequently  be  deprived 
even  of  these ;  and  that  his  own  father,  with  a  wife  and  seven  children, 
was  in  this  very  predicament  but  the  winter  before.  Nevertheless, 
'  nature  intended  every  one  to  marry,'  and,  in  the  case  of  himself  and 
his  beloved,  ^it  is  their  lot  to  come  together .'  On  these  unansioerahle 
grounds  he  takes  a  room  at  2.5.  a  week,  and  thus  utterly  unprepared, 
as  he  appears,  either  for  the  ordinary  or  contingent  expenses  of  a  fam- 
ily, he  marries. 

"  We  may  suspect,  however,  from  the  result  that  he  is  not  so  rash 
and  improvident  in  this  conduct  as,  upon  an  ordinary  calculation,  he 
must  appear  to  be. 

"  Within  a  few  months  she  has  the  prospect  of  a  child,  and  a  child 
brings  with  it  many  expenses.  But  no  matter ;  he  need  not  pay  them, 
for  in  his  neighborhood  he  may  fairly  calculate  upon  having  them 
paid  by  charity.  Charity  never  failed  his  mother  in  her  difficulties, 
and  why,  in  precisely  the  same  di(ficulties,  should  it  be  withheld  from 
him  ?  In  the  case  of  his  wife,  therefore,  as  in  that  of  his  mother,  the 
'■Lying-in  Hospital,'  or  the  '■Lying-in  Dispensary,'  or  the  ^  Royal 
Maternity  Society,'  provides  the  midwifery,  &c.,  the  workhouse  the 
nurse,  the  '  Benevolent  Society'  the  blankets,  linen,  pecuniary  relief, 
&c.  The  ^parish  doctor,'  the  ^dispensary  doctor,'  or  some  other 
'  charitable  doctor,'  extra  drugs  and  medical  attendance.  By  a  little 
management  he  may  avail  himself  at  the  same  time  of  severed  obstetric 
charities,  and  be  visited  successively  by  Ciiurchmen,  Quakers,  Inde- 


96  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

pendents,  Wesleyan  Methodists,  Calvinistic  Methodists,  Hunting- 
donians — in  fact,  by  tlie  cliorltohle  associations  connected  with  every 
churcli  and  chapel  in  tlie  neighborhood. 

"  He  now  finds  that  his  earnings  are  precarious,  and  that,  even  at 
their  utmost  amount,  they  are  inadequate  to  the  support  of  his  in- 
creasing ftimily.  But  his  father's  family  was  for  years  in  the  same 
circumstances,  and  was  always  saved  by  charity.  To  charity^  then, 
he  again  has  recourse. 

"  He  hears  that  twice  a  year  there  is  a  'parish  gift  of  bread.'  From 
some  vestryman,  or  from  some  other  respectable  parishioner,  he  ob- 
tains a  ticket  for  a  quartern  loaf  at  midsummer  and  at  Christmas. 
There  is  also  a  'parish  gift  of  coals.'  By  the  same  means  he  every 
Christmas  gets  a  sack  of  coals.  Indeed,  by  importuning  several  parish- 
ioners, and  by  giving  to  each  of  them  a  diiferent  address,  or  the  same 
address  with  different  names,  he  is  so  fortunate  as  to  secure  three  sacks 
instead  of  one.  On  these  j^eriodical  distributions  he  can  confidently 
deioend,  for  most  of  the  parishioners  dispose  of  their  annual  tickets  to 
the  same  poor  persons  from  year  to  year,  as  a  matter  of  coiM'se;  and 
others,  Avho  are  more  discriminate,  invariably  find,  upon  renewed  in- 
quiry, that  their  petitioners  are  in  the  same  state  of  apparent  indi- 
gence or  destitution.  Under  these  circumstances,  our  applicant  soon 
comes  to  look. upon  his  share  of  the  '  parochial  bounty'  as  a  legitimate 
and  certain  item  in  his  yearly  receipts. 

"  But  this  is  only  a  slight  periodical  relief.  He  wants  more  loaves 
and  more  coals,  and  he  has  the  means  of  obtaining  them.  If  the 
weather  is  severe,  the  '  Spitalfield  Association '  is  at  work,  and  for 
months  together  distributes  '  bread,  coal,  and  potatoes.'  The  '  Soup 
Society'  also  is  in  operation,  and  provides  him  regularly  with  several 
quarts  of  excellent  meat  soup  at  a  penny,  or  sometimes  even  a  half- 
penny, a  quart.  At  all  times  several  '  benevolent  societies'  and  'pen- 
sion societies'  are  acting  in  the  district,  and  from  these  he  receives 
food  or  pecuniary  relief.  He  may  apply,  too,  during  the  temporary 
'Cessation  of  any  of  these  charities,,  to  the  charitable  associations  of  the 
•different  religious  denominations;  to  the  '  District  Visiting  Society;' 
to  the  Independents  Visiting  Society;'  to  the  '  Friend  in  Need  So- 
ciety;' to  the  'Stranger's  Friend  Society;'  to  'Zion's  Good  Will  So- 
ciety.' He  may  be  even  lucky  enough  to  get  something  from  all  of 
them. 

"  If  his  bedding  is  bad,  he  gets  the  loan  of  a  blanket  from  the  '  Be- 
nevolent Society,'  or  from  the  'Blanket  Association,'  or  he  gets  a 
Idanket,  a  rug,  and  a  pair  of  sheets  from  the  '  Spitalfields  Association.' 
The  last  of  these  charities  supplies  him  with  a  flannel  waistcoat  for 
himself  and  a  Jiannel  petticoat  for  his  wife.  In  one  instance,  it  fur- 
nishes his  wife  and  children  with  shoes  and  stockings. 

"  Thus  lie  proceeds  from  year  to  year  with  a  charity  to  meet  every 
exigency  of  health  and  sickness.  The  time  at  length  arrives  when, 
cither  from  the  number  of  cliildren  born  to  him  under  the  kind  super- 
intendence of  the  '  Lying-in  tlie  '  Roycd  Maternity,  or  the  '  Benevolent 
Society,'  or  from  a  desire  to  add  a  legal  and  permanent  provision  to 
the  more  precarious  su]>))lies  of  voluntary  charity,  he  solicits  j^f^^^i-^^ 
■reliffj  he  begs  an  extract  from  the  parish  register,  proves  his  settle- 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  97 

ment  by  the  charity  school  indenture  of  apprenticesMp,  and  quarters 
his  family  on  the  parish,  with  an  aUowance  of  five  shillings  a  week. 
In  this  uniform  alternation  of  voluntary  and  compulsory  relief  he 
draws  towards  the  close  of  his  mendicant  existence. 

"Before  leaving  the  world,  he  might,  perhaps,  return  thanks  to 
the  public.  He  has  been  born  \for  nothing j'  he  has  been  ^nursed  for 
nothing,'  he  has  been  'clothed  for  nothing,'  he  has  been  'educated  for 
nothing,'  he  has  been  'put  out  in  the  ivorld  for  nothing,'  he  has  had 
'medicine  and  medical  attendance  for  nothing,'  and  he  has  had  his 
children  also  'horn,  nursed,  clothed,  fed,  educated,  estaUished,  and 
physicked  for  nothing.' 

"There  is  but  one  good  office  more  for  which  he  can  stand  indebted 
to  society,  and  that  is  his  burial.  He  dies  a  parish  pauper,  and  at  the 
expense  of  the  parish  he  is  provided  with  shroud,  coffin,  pall,  and 
burial  ground;  a  party  of  paupers  from  the  work-house  bear  his  body 
to  the  grave,  and  a  party  of  paupers  are  his  mourners. 

"I  wish  it  to  be  particularly  understood,  that,  in  thus  describing 
the  operation  of  charity  in  my  district,  I  have  been  giving  an  ordinary, 
and  not  an  extraordinary  instance.  I  might  have  included  many 
other  details,  some  of  them  of  a  far  more  aggravated  and  offensive 
nature.  I  have  contented  myself,  however,  with  describing  the  state 
of  the  district  as  regards  charitable  relief,  and  the  extent  to  which 
that  relief  may  he,  and  actually  is,  made  to  minister  to  improvidence 
and  dep)endence." 

That  we  have  already  begun  to  feel  the  fast  hold  of  a  settled  scheme 
of  a  similar  kind  in  the  United  States,  is  very  apparent,  by  not  merely 
looking  at  the  dispersed  and  greatly  augmented  numbers  of  poor 
through  the  States,  but  in  the  stand  already  made  by  them  in  our 
principal  cities,  where  they  practice  the  same  demands  upon  the 
municipal  funds,  and  settle  themselves  under  the  same  pretensions, 
thfct  they  assume  in  England  against  the  parishes. 

As  long  ago  as  1820,  the  cost  of  wine,  brandy,  gin,  rum,  whiskey, 
and  other  liquors  expended  in  the  almshouses  in  Philadelphia,  was 
$3,001  62  for  one  year;  while  the  drugs  and  medicines  for  the  same 
paupers  cost  only  $1,972  34,  and  the  barley  $22  40.  With  all  the 
emendations  in  this  practice  since  the  influence  of  temperance  societies, 
the  amount  expended  in  1832  was,  for  liquors,  $1,560  83;  while  the 
medicines  came  to  $2^289  26,  and  the  barley-water  to  but  $7  33. 

The  vice  of  the  old  countries  has  come  with  its  population  and  its 
poor ;  and  this  is  exemplified  in  every  institution  in  the  Union  where 
the  subject  has  been  inquired  into  or  written  upon.  The  following  is 
from  a  report  of  a  committee  on  the  poor-laws  which  convened  in 
Philadelphia  in  1825  : 

"Upon  the  whole,  your  committee  are  convinced  that  the  effect  of 
a  compulsory  provision  for  the  poor  is  to  increase  the  number  of  pau- 
pers, to  entail  an  oppressive  burden  on  the  country,  to  promote  idle- 
ness and  licentiousness  among  the  laboring  classes,  and  to  aftbrd  relief 
to  the  profligate  and  abandoned,  which  ought  to  be  bestowed  on  the 
virtuous  and  industrious  alone ;  that  the  poor-laws  have  done  away 
with  the  necessity  of  private  charity;  that  they  have  been  onerous  to 
the  community,  and  every  way  injurious  to  the  morals,  comfort,  and 
H.  Rep.  359 7 


98  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND  PAUPERS. 

independence  of  that  class  for  whose  benefit  they  were  intended ;  that 
no  permanent  alleviation  of  the  evils  of  the  system  can  rationally  he 
expected  from  the  erection  of  poor-houses,  or  from  any  other  similar 
expedient,  and  that  the  only  hoj^e  of  effectual  relief  is  the  speedy  and 
total  abolition  of  the  system  itself.  In  this  country,  wliere  there  are 
no  privileged  orders,  where  all  classes  of  society  have  equal, rights, 
and  where  our  population  is  far  from  being  so  dense  as  to  press  upon 
the  means  of  subsistence,  it  is  indeed  alarming  to  find  the  increase  of 
pauperism  progressing  with  such  rapidity.  We  are  fast  treading  in 
the  footsteps  of  England." 

So,  too,  in  the  fourth  report  of  the  Boston  Prison  Discipline  Society,, 
we  find  the  proof  that  pauperism  and  crime  go,  as  they  do  in  Europe, 
and  no  doubt  as  they  travelled  to  this  country  from  Europe,  hand 
in  hand. 

''This  is  a  subject,  too,  which  we  have  introduced  in  this  part  of 
our  report,  because  we  have  become  acquainted  with  the  evils  of  it  in 
consequence  of  what  we  have  seen  in  Massachusetts.  The  State  of 
Massachusetts  appropriates,  and  has  done  it  for  many  years,  about 
$50,000  annually,  as  a  State,  besides  what  is  done  in  the  towns,  for 
the  support  of  paupers.  In  some  of  the  larger  towns,  the  places  where 
they  are  kept  are  so  constructed  and  managed  that  the  poor-houses 
are  most  corrupt  and  corrupting.  They  are  nearly  as  injurious  in 
their  influence  as  the  old  penitentiaries — not  in  the  arts  of  mischief, 
but  in  the  low  and  corrupting  vices.  There  is,  sometimes^  not  even 
a  separation  of  the  sexes.  We  might  specify  large  and  extensive 
establishments,  Avhich  are  now  what  the  old  almshouse  in  Boston  was 
a  few  years  ago.  And  we  could  give  a  detail  of  facts,  which  have 
been  ascertained  from  careful  examination  of  witnesses,  to  which  we 
can  only  allude  in  this  place,  on  account  of  the  character  of  these 
facts.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  they  are  such  as  to  demand  immediate 
attention  from  the  towns  and  the  State.  The  people  of  the  towns 
would  not  countenance  such  things  if  they  were  known,  and  the  State 
would  not  appropriate  its  thousands  annually  for  the  support  of  estab- 
lishments which  are  nuisances  as  much  as  the  old  State  prison.  They 
are  nurseries  of  vice;  they  are  sometimes  introductory  to,  and  some- 
times receptacles  from,  the  prison;  there  is  often  an  alternation  from 
almshouse  to  prison  and  from  prison  to  almshouse.  We  have  not 
stated  the  facts  in  detail  which  are  known  to  us,  nor  shall  we  do  it  in 
this  place  and  at  this  time ;  but,  if  the  character  of  the  establishments 
is  not  altered,  from  which  these  facts  are  gathered,  they  will  be  ex- 
posed in  their  naked  depravity.  Publicity  will  correct  the  evils,  if 
other  means  fail." 

Our  desire  is  not  to  impair  any  of  the  existing  rights  of  strangers 
who  are  among  us;  neither  is  it  founded  in  party  or  political  views, 
except  so  far  as  politics  imply  the  establishment  of  laws  for  the  general 
welfare.  The  Constitution  secures  the  first,  and,  as  regards  the  latter, 
we  are  composed  of  men  of  all  creeds  and  sides.  Our  exclusive  object 
is  to  produce  a  national  character  and  strength  by  a  unity  of  feeling, 
and  a  guaranty  that  hereafter  the  honor  and  safety  of  the  country 
shall  be  entirely  and  only  intrusted  to  those  whom  nature  has  vouch- 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS.  99 

safed  shall  be  true  to  her  rights,  by  the  ties  of  birth  and  the  bond  of 
fellowship. 

We  have  seen  for  many  years  the  undue  influence  of  the  foreigners 
in  our  public  elections;  we  have  witnessed,  time  after  time,  the  good 
intent  of  our  best  men  frustrated  by  the  votes  of  citizens  not  a  day  old, 
led  on  by  demagogues  to  do  as  they  might  be  directed,  and  not  as  they 
knew  was  right.  We  have  seen  a  preponderance  of  one  party  over 
another,  in  which  the  w^eightiest  in  number  was  made  so  by  men 
unpracticed  in  the  princijjles  of  our  instutions,  ignorant  of  our  laws 
and  licentious  in  their  doctrines.  Some'ofiis  have  seen  our  own  party 
triumph  under  the  banner  of  republicanism,  while  the  strength  of  the 
victory  came  by  aliens,  who  knew  nothing  of  the  cause  but  its  name. 
So,  too,  have  some  of  us  been  defeated  by  the  same  men,  while  the 
administration  of  our  government,  as  compared  with  the  wishes  of  her 
own  people,  has  been  put  into  hands  obnoxious  to  the  country.  To 
some  extent  w^e  must  still  submit  to  this  evil ;  but  as  it  must  pass 
away  with  the  present  generation  of  the  foreigner  now  in  the  land, 
and  entitled,  under  the  law,  to  nearly  all  the  franchises  of  the  native, 
we  are  willing  to  endure  that  penalty  so  long,  under  the  consolation 
that  our  children  and  posterity  will  be  saved  from  a  further  continuance 
of  the  curse. 

The  motive  which  led  to  the  passage  of  the  iirst  law  of  naturaliza- 
tion  has  been  greatly  misconceived.  Many  popular  harangues  have 
been  delivered  in  aid  of  party,  when  the  politician,  too  weak  to  be 
sustained  by  his  own  countrymen,  has  invoked  the  aid  of  the  poor 
wanderer,  ignorant  of  everything  save  the  charity  of  his  new  breth- 
ren, by  taxing  his  gratitude  and  appealing  to  the  philanthropy  of  our 
laws,  which,  it  was  alleged,  spread  a  welcome,  a  home,  and  equality 
to  all  the  world. 

Such  was  not  the  true  intent  of  the  framers  of  our  Constitution ;  on 
the  contrary,  it  was  to  diminish  the  number  who  were  daily  pouring 
in,  acquiring  rights  which,  under  the  greater  latitude,  was  tolerated 
by  the  laws  of  the  old  colonies.  Some  of  the  provinces  allowed  natur- 
alization or  right  of  suffrage  in  one  year,  an  1  some  in  longer  or  shorter 
periods.  There  was,  therefore,  great  inequality  in  the  nature  of  the 
citizenship,  according  to  the  colony  where  the  emigrant  resided ;  and 
it  was  to  prevent  this  inequality,  and  to  restrict  the  facilities  of  citi- 
zenship, that  the  Constitution  gave  Congress  the  "power  to  pass 
uniform  laws  of  naturalization."  These  laws  have  been  modified 
from  time  to  time — not,  in  truth,  because  your  own  people  thought  it 
wise,  expedient,  or  honest,  but  because  the  national  legislature,  act- 
ing upon  the  suggestions  of  party,  has  endeavored  to  perpetuate  its 
power  by  an  artificial  increase  of  its  numbers.  When  the  times  which 
gave  occasion  for  these  measures  have  passed  away,  and  even  the 
prominent  actors  have  looked  back  upon  the  evils  which  a  misguided 
policy  or  a  mistaken  benevolence  had  produced,  and  was  continuing, 
they  have  exclaimed  with  the  patriot  Gerrj^,  "I  wish  there  were  an 
ocean  of  fire  between  this  and  the  old  world."  Even  before  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Constitution,  General  Washington,  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Mor- 
ris, dated  24th  July,  1778,  calls  his  attention,  as  the  head  of  the  then 
republican  party,  to  what  he  terms  "a  subject  of  very  great  import- 


100  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

ance  to  the  -well-being  of  these  States" — '-the  appointment  of  for- 
eigners to  offices  of  rank  and  trust  in  our  service."  In  that  letter  he 
saySj  "The  officers  on  whom  you  must  depend  for  the  defence  of  this 
cause,  and  who,  from  length  of  service,  their  connexions,  property, 
and,  in  behalf  of  many,  I  may  add,  military  merit,  will  not  submit 
much,  if  any^  longer  to  the  unnatural  promotion  of  men  over  them 
•who  have  nothing  more  than  a  little  plausibility,  unbounded  pride_, 
.•and  ambition."  The  first  law  of  naturalization  had  not  been  in 
practice  seven  years  when  Jefferson,  in  a  letter  of  the  13tli  May,  1797, 
speaking  of  the  people  of  the  continent  and  of  England,  declares 
"^that  even  the  factorage  of  their  affairs  here  is  kept  to  themselves  by 
factitious  citizenships;  that  these /o?'e/(/?i  and  false  citizens  now  consti- 
tute the  great  body  of  what  are  called  our  merchants,  fill  our  seaports, 
are  planted  in  every  little  town  and  district  of  the  interor  country, 
sway  every  thing  in  the  former  places  by  their  own  votes  and  those  of 
their  dependents,  in  the  latter  by  their  insinuations  and  the  influence 
of  their  ledgers;  that  they  are  advancing  fast  to  a  monopoly  of  our 
banks  and  j)ublic  funds,  and  thereby  placing  our  public  finances  un- 
der their  control;  that  they  have,  in  their  alliance,  the  most  influen- 
tial characters  in  and  out  of  office;  where  they  have  shown  by  all 
these  bearings  on  the  different  branches  of  the  government  they  can 
force  it  to  proceed  in  whatever  direction  they  dictate,  and  bend  the 
interests  of  this  country  entirely  to  the  will  of  another.  When  all 
this,  I  say,  is  attended  to,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  say  Ave  stand  on 
independent  ground." 

Mr.  Jefferson's  language  in  1781  was  prophetic  of  the  evils  and  cor- 
ruptions upon  our  country  and  its  institutions,  of  which  we  are  now 
complaining  by  the  increase  of  foreign  population.     He  then  said: 

"The  present  desire  of  America  is  to  produce  rapid  population  by 
as  great  importation  of  foreigners  as  possible.  But  is  this  founded  in 
policy?  Are  there  no  inconveniences  to  be  thrown  into  the  scale 
against  the  advantages  expected  from  a  multiplication  of  numbers  by 
the  importation  of  foreigners?  It  is  for  the  happiness  of  those  united 
in  society  to  harmonize  as  much  as  possible  in  matters  which  they 
must  of  necessity  transact  together. 

"  Civil  government  being  the  sole  object  of  forming  societies,  its 
administration  must  be  conducted  by  common  consent. 

"  Every  species  of  government  has  its  specific  principles — ours,  per- 
haps, are  more  peculiar  than  those  of  any  in  the  universe.  It  is  a 
composition  of  the  first  principles  of  the  English  constitution,  with 
others  derived  from  natural  rights  and  natural  reason.  To  these 
nothing  can  be  more  opposed  than  the  maxims  of  absolute  mon- 
archies. Yet  from  such  we  are  to  expect  the  greatest  number  of 
emigrants. 

"They  will  bring  with  them  the  principles  of  government  they 
have  imbibed  in  their  early  youth,  or,  if  able  to  throw  them  oft',  it 
will  be  in  exchange  for  an  unbridled  licentiousness,  passing,  as  is 
usual,  from  one  extreme  to  another.  It  would  be  a  miracle  were  they 
to  stop  precisely  at  the  point  of  temperate  liberty. 

"  In  proportion  to  their  numbers,  they  will  share  with  us  the  legis- 
lation ;  they  will  infuse  into  it  their  spirit,  warp  and  bias  its  direc- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    TAUPERS.  101 

tions,  and  render  it  a  heterogeneous,  incoherent,  distracted  mass.  I 
may  appeal  to  experience  for  a  verification  of  these  conjectures.  But 
if  they  are  not  certain  in  event,  are  they  not  possible  ?  Are  they  not 
probable?  Is  it  not  safer  to  wait  with  patience  for  the  attainment  of 
any  degree  of  population  desired  or  expected  ?  May  not  our  govern- 
ment be  more  homogeneous,  more  j)eaceable,  more  durable?  What 
would  be  the  condition  of  France,  if  twenty  millions  of  Americans 
were  suddenly  imported  into  that  kingdom?  If  it  would  be  more  tur- 
bulent, less  happy,  less  strong,  we  may  believe  that  the  addition  of 
half  a  million  of  foreigners  would  produce  a  similar  effect  here." 

The  southern  and  southwestern  States  are  deeply  interested  in  the 
consequences  of  the  great  increase  of  population  from  foreign  shores. 
It  is  not  merely  that  the  prejudices  of  a  strange  people  are  infused 
into  the  minds  of  their  citizens,  upon  invidious  comparisons  between 
the  things  of  this  country  and  those  of  the  old  world ;  nor  yet  the 
more  important  fact  that  the  republican  spirit  of  our  own  people  is 
impaired  by  the  corruptions  of  the  monarchists,  or  the  licentiousness 
of  the  renegade — all  of  which  are  severe  and  material  evils  upon  our 
people  and  laws,  which,  in  themselves,  demand  a  speedy  remedy ;  but 
it  is,  that  every  foreigner  who  sets  his  foot  within  the  limits  of  those 
States,  is  another  natural  enemy  to  their  social  peace,  and  swells  the 
band  of  future  revolutionists  which  already  exist  in  embrj'o  against 
either  the  s^Dccial  institutions  and  properties  of  some  of  the  States,  or 
against  the  fixed  doctrines  of  the  government. 

The  peculiar  construction  of  our  national  system,  which  is  made  up 
of  confederated  sovereignties,  many  of  them  dissimilar  in  their  consti- 
tutions and  laws,  and  yet  all  entitled  to  a  zealous  protection  by  each 
other,  makes  it  not  only  a  duty,  but  absolutely  necessary  that  we 
should  not  tolerate  any  population,  whether  native  or  alien,  which 
tends  to  promote  the  factions  against  the  established  order  or  rights 
of  any  portion  of  those  States. 

The  early  education  and  subsequent  habits  of  foreigners  make  them, 
as  soon  as  they  land  here,  partisans  against  certain  features  in  the  do- 
mestic policy  of  the  south,  without  their  understanding  the  subject  in 
any  of  its  bearings,  and  without  pausing  to  reflect  that  the  system 
was  imposed  upon  us  by  the  avarice  and  cupidity  of  their  own  country- 
men and  ancestors. 

There  is  no  one  who  has  looked  calmly  into  this  matter,  who  has 
not  acknowledged  the  evil  of  the  law  that  admitted  aliens  to  the 
rights  of  the  native  ;  and  there  is  no  one  who  has  marked  the  temper 
of  recent  times,  who  can  fail  to  foresee  that  its  repeal  will  be  demanded, 
not  merely  asked  lor  as  a  boon,  to  suit  the  self-love  of  the  few, 
but  as  a  right,  to  give  confidence  to  the  people. 

Such  has  been  the  influence  of  separate  classes  of  foreigners,  that 
they  have  been  appealed  to  as  a  body  by  politicians  to  carry  out  elec- 
tions supposed  to  be  congenial  with  their  views ;  and  such  is  the  ar- 
rogance of  another  caste  of  emigrants  that  they  have  lately  adopted 
resolutions  appointing  men  to  note  the  course  of  the  natives  and  the 
action  of  Congress  on  their  petitions. 

The  following,  from  a  convention  of  the  Dutch,  at  Cape  Girardeau, 
in  Missouri,  in  February  last,  shows  their  designs  : 


102  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

''  Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  vigilance  and  concspondence,  con- 
sisting of  twelve  persons,  be  appointed,  whose  duty  it  shall  he  to  enter 
into  correspondence  Avitli  our  German  brethren  residing  at  distant 
places,  to  watch  the  proceedings  and  movements  of  the  native  Ameri- 
cans and  of  Congress  upon  the  above  subject,  and  to  call  another 
meeting  whenever  desirable  or  necessary.  The  chairman  shall  be 
president  of  this  committee. 

"  Resolved,  That  we  herewith  call  upon  all  Germans  residing  in 
the  United  States,  and  admonish  them  most  earnestly  to  join  us  in 
taking  measures  calculated  to  oppose  propositions  holding  in  derision 
all  reason  and  higher  considerations  of  civilized  nations,  and  to  pre- 
vent such  calamit}'  to  our  countrymen  and  all  emigrants,  as  must  ne- 
cessarily arise  from  the  accomplishment  of  the  above-mentioned 
designs.  We  request  them  in  particular  to  call  meetings,  and  petition 
Congress  that  the  prayer  of  the  Native  American  Association  be  not 
granted." 

From  all  these  doings  it  will  be  seen  that  the  emigrants  are  not 
satisfied  with  the  enjoyment  of  the  rights  provided  for,  and  secured  to 
them  by  the  laws,  but  they  are  agitating  the  extension  of  these  rights 
to  the  unborn  of  their  respective  nations  ;  so  that  hereafter,  and.  in 
the  course  of  no  very  distant  time,  the  native  may  be  a  stranger  in 
his  own  land,  and  outnumbered  by  the  foreigners. 

This  is  only  in  keeping  with  their  kindred  feelings  for  one  another, 
for  people  of  the  same  land  and  of  the  same  blood  ;  and  in  itself  is 
not  to  be  denounced,  because  it  is  natural.  The  emigrant  colonists  (if 
we  may  so  term  them)  would  no  doubt  think  it  not  only  an  addition 
to  their  own  security  to  cover  the  whole  land  with  their  own  people, 
but  give  a  new  honor  to  their  name,  to  redeem  a  country  so  great  and 
wide  from  men  whom  they  think  too  careless  to  appreciate,  and  too 
supine  to  defend  its  value.  Though  it  is  wise  in  these  men  to  carry 
out  their  plans,  whether  it  be  that  of  establishing  a  national  character 
by  their  own  numbers  and  their  own  agency,  regardless  of  us,  or  that 
of  accomplishing  the  designs  of  their  ancient  rulers  or  countrymen  at 
home,  and  erect  a  ncAv  form  of  government  upon  the  spoils  of  this;  it 
is  well  for  us  to  inquire  whether  we  are  doing  justice  to  the  institutions 
for  which  our  ancestors  struggled,  and  of  Avhich  we  boast,  to  stand  with 
folded  arms  and  see  those  institutions  and  our  natural  rights  transfer- 
red,  while  our  judgments  are  deluded  and  our  energies  suppressed  by 
insidious  appeals  to  our  humanity  and  our  present  security.  We  be- 
lieve the  powers  of  thrones  are  at  work  against  us  ;  that  while  paupers 
and  the  dregs  of  life  are  sent  to  us  under  a  rule  of  policy  in  England,  and 
assassins  come  to  us  in  the  national  vessels  of  France,  there  are  thou- 
sands who  are  taught  to  look  forward  to  the  day  when  the  old  colonies 
which  the  former  lost  shall  be  brought  back  to  the  folds  of  monarchy 
by  her  own  settlers,  who  are  temporary  citizens  of  these  United  States, 
but  still  better  subjects  of  their  own  kings. 

There  were^  even  in  this  city,  persons  who^  during  the  last  war, 
claimed  exemption  from  service,  and  at  the  same  time  the  protection 
of  the  law,  by  removal  to  the  interior — a  protection  intended  for  the 
government,  but  which  the  foreigner  turned  to  his  own  personal  ad- 
vantage, whilst  the  country  lost  his  services  and  the  enemy  a  foe. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  103 

A  distinguished  statesman,  in  discussing  the  admission  of  Michigan 
into  the  Union,  after  adverting  to  the  proof  that  the  British  govern- 
ment was  transporting  her  profligate  and  poor  to  this  country,  used 
the  following  language  : 

'*  If  it  is  so  desirable  foD  that  government  to  disencumber  itself  of 
such  a  number  of  paupers  at  such  an  expense,  is  the  danger  apprehended 
there  by  those  who  hare  a  knowledge  of  the  character  and  condition  of 
that  population  to  be  disregarded  by  the  American  people  ?  AVe  are 
now,  sir,  a  virtuous,  prosperous,  and  a  happy  people  ;  our  yeomanry, 
the  ])\\\^\Qd\  p)Ower  of  the  nation,  and  its  most  secure  defence,  are  un- 
disturbed in  their  jjeaceful  avocations  by  these  turbulent,  vicious,  and 
idle  vaji'rants  from  abroad,  and  are  not  emulous  to  mins-le  v\'ith  them 
in  their  devotion  to  the  free  institutions  of  our  country.  And,  sir,  is 
it  not  desirable  to  continue  this  tranquillity  ?  And  can  you  indulge 
a  hope  of  accomplishing  such  an  object,  if  you  throw  open  the  ballot- 
box  to  the  indiscriminate  approach  of  this  alien  population  ?  I  will 
not  affirm  that  the  aliens  in  Michigan  compose  any  part  of  this  vagrant 
population  ;  but,  sir,  it  is  a  Avell  authenticated  fact,  that  witliin  the 
last  five  years  many  thousands  of  that  description  have  been  trans- 
ported direct  from  the  poor-houses  of  Europe  to  the  continent  of 
America,  at  an  expense  of  several  millions  of  dollars  to  the  British 
government. 

''Sir,  while  I  indulge  no  morbid  apprehension  for  the  future,  yet,  if 
you  adopt  the  principles  of  this  bill,  I  cannot  but  anticipate  the  most 
disastrous  consequences  to  our  country.  Sir,  from  the  appalling  dis- 
closures which  each  day  develops,  it  remains  for  this  people  to  deter- 
mine whether  it  will  be  wise,  just,  or  even  safe,  to  open  this  floodgate 
of  vice  and  corruption,  of  indolence  and  crime,  which,  in  its  demoral- 
izing effects,  may  corrupt  the  common  fountain  from  which  flow  the 
multiplied  blessings  which  our  country  now  enjoys. 

"This  class  of  persons,  sir,  while  they  labor  under  the  disqualifica- 
tion of  alienism,  are  subject  to  few  civil  duties,  (if  they  had  the  ca- 
pacity to  discharge  them,)  and,  by  international  laws,  as  expounded 
by  the  British  government,  they  cannot  expatriate  themselves,  nor  can 
you  compel  them  to  the  performance  of  military  service  ;  and  if,  in  a 
war  between  this  and  their  native  country,  they  are  found  in  arms 
against  it,  they  are  liable  to  condemnation,  and  to  the  punishment 
<  death  as  traitors  to  their  native  land.  Sir,  to  show  the  sense  of 
the  British  government  on  this  subject,  and  the  rigid  as  claimed  by 
them  to  require  the  return  to  their  native  country  of  this  population, 
and  all  others,  in  times  of  peril,  the  king  of  England,  on  the  16tli 
day  of  October_,  1807,  issued  his  proclamation,  reclaiming  from  for- 
eign service  his  native  subjects,  in  which  he  declared  '  that  the  king- 
dom was  menaced  and  in  danger,'  and  he  recalled  from  foreign  service 
all  seamen  and  seafaring  men,  who  were  natural-born  subjects,  and 
ordered  them  to  withdraw  themselves  and  return  home,  on  pain  of 
being  proceeded  against,  &c.  Here,  sir,  you  have  a  recognition  of  the 
power  and  the  exercise  of  the  right  of  the  king  to  call  home  his  na- 
tive-born subjects,  wherever  they  may  be,  and  wherever  they  may 
have  departed.  And  now,  sir,  you  are  solicited  by  this  bill  to  give  to 
aliens,  who  are  liable  to  be  recalled  at  the  pleasure  of  their  king,  the 


104  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

important  jtiivilege  of  voting  for  all  the  officers  of  your  government. 
Sir,  if  these  aliens  shall  act  in  concert,  as  they  hitlierto  have  done, 
and  I  have  no  doubt  will  continue  to  do,  will  they  not  control  the 
whole  civil  and  military  operations  of  the  American  people  within  a 
very  limited  period  ?  Their  habits  of  life  disqualify  them  from  min- 
gling with  our  citizens,  or  appreciating  or  enjoy ingi  the  free  institu- 
tions of  our  country  ;  and  by  conferring  on  them  prematurely,  privi- 
leges to  which  they  have  not  been  accustomed,  and  the  benefits  of 
which  they  do  not  appreciate,  will  you  not  at  least  hazard  the  perma- 
nency of  our  government  ?  Sir,  in  the  past  experience  of  the  world, 
has  it  ever  been  known  that  an  intelligent  people,  emerging  from  a 
state  of  dependency,  in  forming  for  themselves  and  their  posterity  a 
constitution  and  form  of  government  which  should  control,  in  all  fu- 
ture time,  their  legislative  action,  have  called  to  their  aid  foreigners, 
aliens,  persons  owing  allegiance  to  other,  and  perhaps  rival  nations  ? 
Sir,  this  new  principle  which  we  are  now  called  upon  to  establis^i  is 
no  less  dangerous  than  novel.  At  this  particular  crisis,  it  is  known 
to  all,  that,  in  some  of  the  European  states  there  is  a  redundant  popu- 
lation, particularly  in  England  and  Ireland,  which  disturb  the  tran- 
quillity and  threaten  with  violence  the  sacred  rights  of  peaceful  sub- 
jects ;  and  the  relief  there  deemed  most  effectual  is  transportation  to 
America.  With  a  view  to  an  object  so  desirable  to  them,  but  -vThicb 
is  becoming  so  burdensome  to  us,  thousands  are  transported  to  America 
each  year,  at  the  expense  of  the  British  government,  and  here  cast 
upon  the  charity  of  our  people.  In  1831,  '33,  '35,  there  were  upwards 
of  one  hundred  and  tJiuiij-nine  thoiisand  foreigners  landed  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  many  of  whom  were  of  the  most  ignorant,  vicious,  and 
degraded  class,  depending  upon  charity  alone  for  their  daily  subsist- 
ence. And,  sir,  during  four  successive  days  in  May  last,  one  ilionsand 
nine  hundred  and  seventy-three  foreign  emigrants  arrived  in  the  same 
city,  and  in  the  month  of  May  last,  there  were  ''fifteen  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  twentij-five'  arrived  at  the  New  York  quarantine  ground. 
Now,  sir,  carry  out  the  provisions  of  this  bill,  by  similar  provisions  in 
all  the  State  constitutions,  and  upon  their  arrival  extend  to  these 
aliens,  indiscriminately,  the  right  of  sufirage,  and  who  is  so  dull  of 
vision  as  not  to  foresee  the  fatal  effects  of  such  a  measure  upon  our 
civil  and  religious  institutions  ?  Upon  this  subject,  sir,  we  are  not 
left  to  conjecture  alone  ;  the  design  has  been  openly  avowed,  as  will 
appear  from  the  following  handbill,  w^hich  was  liberally  circulated  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  at  the  late  charter  election.    It  is  in  these  words : 

"  'Irishmen,  to  your  posts,  or  you  will  lose  America  !  By  perse- 
verance you  may  become  its  rulers  ;  by  negligence  you  will  become 
its  slaves.  Your  own  country  was  lost  by  submitting  to  ambitious 
men.  This  beautiful  country  you  may  gain  by  being  firm  and  united. 
Vote  the  ticket,  Alexander  Stewart,  alderman  ;  Edward  Flanagan  for 
assessor — both  true  Irishmen.' 

"Here,  sir,  you  have  the  objects  avowed — the  suhversion  of  your 
government,  and  a  revolution  contemplated.  Mark  the  language  of 
this  appeal,  and  remember  that  it  is  made  to  Irishmen  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  at  an  election  for  officers  of  the  city  government,  within 
which  there  are  probably  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  foreigners." 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS.  105 

From  the  earliest  to  the  present  times,  therefore,  the  law  of  natur- 
alization has  been  looked  upon  as  an  evil.  It  has  been  altered  at 
various  periods,  to  suit  rather  the  interests  of  prevailing  parties,  than 
with  a  view  to  the  great  national  consideration  of  a  homogeneous 
population  and  a  unity  of  character.  Now,  however,  when  the  evils 
of  immigration,  in  every  form  that  poverty,  numbers,  and  profligacy 
can  assume,  are  universally  acknowledged  among  us  ;  when  the  feder- 
alists, republicans,  and  democrats,  and  men  of  every  faith  unite  in 
the  prayer  to  redeem  the  land  from  this  moral  and  physical  scourge, 
our  legislators  can  assume  and  execute  that  duty  with  a  calmness  due 
to  the  cause,  and  productive  of  a  result  worthy  the  will  of  the  people. 

With  all  that  Congress  can  do,  there  will  still  be  something  left 
for  the  people  of  the  States  to  perform  in  this  behalf.  The  passage  of 
any  law  by  the  national  legislature,  though  it  might,  for  the  future, 
keep  out  all  emigrants,  or,  at  any  rate,  impose  civil  disabilities,  or 
take  away  the  right  of  naturalization,  would,  nevertheless^  leave  an 
immense  number  of  aliens  in  the  country,  who^  under  the  State  regu- 
lations, would  be  entitled  to  vote  for  members  of  the  most  numerous 
branch  of  the  legislatures ;  and,  therefore,  though  not  citizens,  and 
even  intending  and  declaring  their  intention  never  to  become  citizens 
of  the  United  States,  would,  notwithstanding,  under  the  constitution 
whieh  produces  this  singular  anomaly,  have  the  same  right  to  vote 
for  members  of  Congress,  and  indirectly  for  electors  of  President  and 
Vice  President,  that  the  natives  have. 

Thus,  by  the  constitution  of  New  York  in  1777,  inhabitants  of  full 
age,  with  property  qualification,  who  had  resided  there  for  six  months, 
upon  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  State,  would  be  qualified 
"electors." 

The  different  States  should,  therefore,  change  their  constitutions  or 
laws,  and  provide  that  those  only  who  are  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  as  well  as  residents  of  the  respective  States,  shall  be  entitled 
to  vote. 

But  the  fact  that  there  will  always  be  an  itinerant  population  of 
aliens,  who,  with  the  reversionary  intent  towards  their  own  land  and 
laws,  and  with  no  desire  to  become  citizens  of  the  Union,  will,  never- 
theless, enjoy  the  same  political  rights  and  powers  that  we  do,  is  a 
powerful  reason  why  Congress  should  hasten  to  prevent  a  spread  of 
that  evil,  by  diminishing  the  inducements  to  immigration,  and  by 
guarding  the  country  through  every  possible  precaution  from  the 
overflow  of  the  mighty  tide  of  vagrants,  and  all  the  rest  of  that  re- 
dundant multitude  which  individual  feeling  and  the  policy  of  foreign 
governments  are  wafting  to  our  shores. 

Your  committee  will,  no  doubt,  have  devised  many  and  better  plans 
to  remedy  all  this  than  we  can  suggest :  but  as  your  inquiries  call 
our  attention  to  this  particular  point,  I  am  directed  to  say,  that  we 
believe  the  first  great  step  to  restore  a  confidence  of  the  people  in 
themselves,  as  the  future  exclusive  agents  in  all  that  regards  the 
maintenance  of  their  institutions  and  the  establishment  of  a  national 
character,  is  the  entire  repeal  of  the  naturalization  laws. 

The  next  is  the  passage  of  laws  sufficiently  penal,  but  not  so  much 
so  as  to  prevent  their  faithful  enforcement,  upon  all  ship  and  stage 


106  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

owners,  masters  and  agents,  who  shall  convey  or  give  passage,  or  aid 
in  giving  passage,  to  any  pauper,  convict,  or  fugitive  from  justice  ; 
and  requiring  the  collectors  of  the  different  ports  to  take  bond  and 
security  before  the  clearing  or  entering  of  any  vessel,  to  observe  that 
law.  Thirdly,  the  jirohibition  of  the  appointment  of  any  unnatural- 
ized citizen  to  any  office  of  honor  or  profit  under  the  United  States. 
And,  lastly,  to  reorganize  the  consular  establishments  of  the  United 
States  in  foreign  countries,  including  Canada  and  the  various  colonies, 
giving  those  officers  appropriate  salaries  for  their  present,  and  the 
contemplated  additional  duties,  and  requiring — 

First.  That  every  person  not  a  native  or  naturalized  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  before  embarking  or  taking  passage  for  this  country, 
shall  provide  himself  with  a  passport  from  the  American  consul  at 
the  place  of  debarcation,  certifying  the  proof  of  his  being  not  a  pauper 
or  suspected  person  ;  and  not  likely  to  become  a  charge  to  the  county 
of  any  one  of  the  States. 

Second.  Besides  requiring  bonds  from  consuls  for  the  faithful  per- 
formance of  their  duties,  enacting  penal  laws  to  a  proper  extent  for 
any  violation  of  them,  and  future  disqualification  from  office  upon 
conviction. 

Third.  Imposing  a  tax  of  twenty  dollars  upon  each  such  passenger, 
to  be  paid  to  the  consul  on  receipt  of  the  passport ;  which  fees  shall 
be  accounted  for  monthly  to  the  treasury,  and  thus  constitute  a  fund 
for  the  support  of  the  consular  system. 

Fourth.  Imposing  a  penalty  upon  all  proprietors,  conductors,  mas- 
ters, and  agents  of  vessels  and  vehicles,  receiving  or  aiding  in  trans- 
porting passengers  without  such  passport. 

If  these  or  similar  provisions  are  enacted  by  Congress,  we  believe 
that  all  the  accessory  steps  necessary  lor  the  accomplishment  of  this 
national  object  will  soon  follow  in  the  States  ;  and  your  country  will 
be  then,  and  not  until  then,  entitled  to  say  they  are  a  people  "  who 
govern  themselves,  independent  of  foreign  nations." 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully, 

T.  D.  JONES, 
Becording  Secretary  of  the  Native  American  Association 
of  the  United  States,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Hon.  David  Russell. 


Mr    Chapin  to  3Ir.  liussell. 

Dear  Sir  :  In  reply  to  the  interrogatories  which  you  communicated 
to  me  some  time  since,  in  reference  to  the  number  of  emigrants  who 
have  arrived  at  this  and  other  ports  of  the  United  States  during  the 
past  ten  years  ;  the  number  of  paupers  :  their  character  ;  from  whence 
they  came  ;  together  with  other  jmrticulars  relative  to  the  violation  of 
the  naturalization  law,  &c.,  I  proceed  to  state  the  facts  within  my 
knowledge.  It  is  proper  that  I  should  premise,  however,  by  saying 
that  my  public  duties,  in  connexion  with  the  difficulties  of  obtaining 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  107 

many  material  facts  which  I  have  been  desirous  to  secure,  and  which 
are  not  even  jet  at  hand,  have  delayed  my  reply  to  an  unexpected, 
and  perhaps  an  unreasonable,  time.  Some  questions,  indeed,  it  will 
be  impossible  for  me  to  answer,  inasmuch  as  the  sources  of  informa- 
tion are  at  so  great  a  distance  as  to  preclude  the  possibility,  under 
present  circumstances,  of  securing  such  data  as  would  justify  positive 
conclusions  upon  these  particular  subjects.  Still,  I  trust  you  will 
have  obtained  tlie  information  desired,  in  reply  to  the  duplicate  in- 
terrogatories, which,  as  you  inform  me,  have  been  transmitted  to  the 
place  referred  to.  From  the  sources  to  which  you  have  applied  here, 
it  is  not  probable  you  will  receive  much  information  at  present.  Mr. 
Morse  has  been,  for  sometime  jjast^  in  Europe  ;  and^the  arduous  official 
duties  of  our  mayor  prevent  the  requisite  attention  to  the  subject  in 
question  ;  he  has,  accordingly,  desired  me  to  reply  with  the  few  par- 
ticulars at  my  command.  I  would  add,  also,  that  upon  some  subjects 
embraced  in  the  inquires,  it  is  extremely  difficult,  if  not  impossible, 
to  obtain  that  minute  information  which  is  so  desirable,  when  the 
effects  are  so  obvious  and  alarming.  Local  causes  and  political  in- 
terests unfortunately  oppose  serious  obstacles  in  the  way  of  acquiring 
many  important  and  useful  facts.  This  circumstance,  among  others, 
renders  the  information  which  should  be  afforded  from  those  quarters 
still  more  necessary  and  interesting.  But  such  is  the  devotion  to 
party  with  very  many  otherwise  unexceptionable  citizens,  and 
such  the  i")olitical  objects  to  be  secured  by  withholding  many  par- 
ticular causes  of  our  just  apprehensions,  that  little  success  usually 
attends  efforts  to  get  possession  of  records  which  should  yield  us  satis- 
factory details. 

It  cannot  be  otherwise  than  ])ainful  to  the  really  patriotic  citizen 
to  notice  this  fact ;  still,  it  is  calculated  to  illustrate  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal causes  of  our  fears,  and  to  awaken  our  native  fellow-countrymen 
to  a  sense  of  the  importance  of  securing  our  privileges  and  liberties  in 
such  a  manner  as  that  they  cannot  be  so  frequently  and  recklessly 
endangered. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  influence  of  foreigners  gives,  or  has  here- 
tofore given,  predominancy  to  that  party  into  which  its  weight  has 
been  thrown.  Ordinarily  we  poll  from  35,000  to  38^000  votes,  about 
15,000  of  which  are,  it  is  computed,  those  of  foreigners  or  adopted 
citizens.  Hence  the  influence  wliich  they  exercise  over  our  destinies, 
and  lience,  also,  the  efforts  and  sacrifices  made  by  politicians  and 
selfish  and  ambitious  men  to  secure  the  votes  and  partizan  zeal  of 
the  thousands  of  our  poor  and  ignorant  foreign  population  at  our  city 
elections.  The  objects,  likewise,  in  withholding  or  obscuring  facts 
relative  to  these  foreigners,  and  which,  if  generally  known,  would 
increase  the  fears  of  many  of  our  citzens^  are,  from  this  circumstance, 
equally  apparent.  That  this  great  balancing  power  may  be  seriously 
pernicious,  or  fatally  destructive,  to  our  institutions,  I  need  not  re- 
mind you  ;  and  thatit  has  already  been  so  is  known  to  us  all.  I  wouldnot 
wish  to  be  understood  that  there  are  not  very  many  among  our  adopted 
citizens  who  are  highly  respectable,  intellectual,  moral,  and  patriotic  ; 
but,  of  the  gross  numbers  who  flock  to  our  shores,  such  will  not  be 
thought  to  constitute  a  very  large  proportion.  The  time  required  to 
give  to  foreigners  the  majority  of  votes  at  all  important  city  elections, 


108  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

can  he  easily  conceived  from  the  above  particulars,  in  connexion  Avith 
the  increasing  numbers  added  to  our  population  and  to  our  natural- 
ized citizens  ;  certainly,  when  it  is  know  that  froin  one  to  huo  thou- 
sand are  manufactured  on  and  for  the  occasion  of  each  election.  At 
the  election  of  last  fall,  more  than  two  thousand  were  naturalized  ; 
report  says  twenty-seven  hundred ;  and  at  that  of  this  spring,  more 
than  eleven  hundred.  These  estimates  may  fall  far  short  of  the 
actual  numbers  ;  but,  they  being  ascertained,  we  are  justified  in  the 
supposition  that  they  may  be  even  greater,  from  circumstances  con- 
nected with  the  exposition  of  the  records  of  the  court,  as  will  hereafter 
appear.  This  fact  should  be  noticed,  in  passing,  as  showing  the 
importance  of  restricting  the  power  to  grant  certificates  of  naturali- 
zation to  the  United  States  courts,  to  the  supreme  courts,  or  to  the 
legislatures  of  the  several  States^,  or,  perhaps,  to  Congress  itself. 
But,  as  I  propose  to  refer  again  to  this  and  previous  particulars,  I 
will  here  subjoin  some  few  statistical  facts  in  answer  to  so  much  of 
your  first  interrogatory  as  is  included  in  the  following  quotation,  viz  : 
"What  number  of  foreigners  have  arrived  at  New  York  in  each  year, 
and  have  done  for  the  last  ten'years?" 

In  1827,  20,824  In  1831,  31,739  In  1835,  35,308 

1828,  19,958  1832,  48,589  1836,  60,541 

1829,  15,036  1833,  41,752  1837,  52,806 

1830,  30,224  1834,  48,111 

Making  a  total  since  1827,  and  for  ten  years,  of  alien  passengers 
who  have  arrived  at  the  port  of  New  York  alone,  of  384,064.  But, 
in  the  language  of  a  recent  report  on  this  subject,  and  which  is  un- 
doubtedly near  the  truth,  "it  is  confidently  believed  that  the  whole  num- 
ber of  foreign  immigrants  who  have  arrived  in  this  city  since  1830, 
amounts  to  more  than  500,000." 

Previous  to  the  year  1830,  the  estimates  included  all  the  passengers ; 
and  consequently,  some  citizens  of  the  United  States.  Since  that  date, 
alien  passengers  alone  are  enumerated.  It  is  proper  to  remark,  how- 
ever, that  the  numbers  for  1827,  '28,  and  '29,  being  taken  from  the  cus- 
tom-house, and  those  since  from  the  mayor's  office  of  this  city,  ex- 
hibit a  discrepancy  of  several  thousand.  It  may  be  assumed,  as  will 
hereafter  appear,  that  an  annual  difference  of  8,000  exists  between  the 
two  departments  ;  and  hence,  that  to  the  above  number  should  be 
added  16,000  passengers,  making  the  total  390,064.  In  1831,  this 
difierence  was  16,918,  and  in  1832,  it  was  9,774.  It  is  not  impossible 
but  that  this  discrepancy  originated  through  the  interest  felt  for  the 
result  by  some  ofiicers  connected  with  the  returns  to  the  custom-house, 
as  it  is  well  known  that  very  many  of  them  are  themselves  foreigners, 
and  their  own  political  influence  and  resources  may,  possibly,  have 
been  instrumental  in  some  way.  It  is,  nevertheless,  true  that  the  re- 
turns from  the  mayor's  office  are  correct,  as  far  as  they  go;  though 
even  these,  in  point  of  fact,  fall  short  of  the  actual  number  of  pas- 
sengers by  vessels  of,  and  less  than  40  tons  burden  ;  and  they  are  not 
taken  into  this  account.  I  am  assured  by  the  mayor,  that  the  law 
requiring  all  alien  passengers  to  report  themselves  at  his  office  within 
forty-eight  hours  after  being  landed  within  the  city,  is  very  often 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  109 

violated.  The  numbers  before  quoted  are  derived  from  a  compliance 
with  this  law  ;  but  thousands  make  their  way  into  this  city,  without 
the  least  knowledge  of,  or  disposition  to  comply  with  it.  Indeed,  it 
might  be  fatal  to  the  objects  of  great  numbers  coming  to  this  country, 
particularly  felons  and  refugees  from  justice,  to  make  such  a  report  of 
themselves ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  many  act  from  a  knowledge  of 
this  fact.  The  landing,  also,  of  whole  ship  loads  of  aliens  in  a  neigh- 
boring State  bordering  upon  our  bay  is  notorious,  and  in  direct  con- 
travention of  this  law.  All  such  secretly  mingle  with  the  mass  of  our 
floating  population,  and  are  no  more  thought  of  until  arraigned  before 
our  police  or  criminal  courts,  or  until  forced  upon  our  charities. 

According  to  the  reports  of  the  custom-house,  there  were  1,256  pas- 
sengers who  arrived  at  this  port  from  first  of  January  to  the  first  of 
April,  last  past.  Taking  this  estimate  as  it  is  given,  and  the  character 
of  the  passengers  as  reported,  for  the  purj^ose  of  an  example,  and  for 
the  deductions  which  follow,  we  are  enabled  to  arrive  at  the  relative 
proportion  of  those  who  are  provided  with  means  to  support  them- 
selves or  families,  or  who  possibly  may  not  be  a  tax  and  burden  upon 
our  citizens. 

Of  the  above  number,  then,  for  the  first  quarter  of  this  year,  it  is 
stated  that  there  were  267  citizens  of  the  United  States,  658  aliens 
from  Great  Britain,  Ireland,  and  Scotland,  1*76  from  Germany,  and 
155  from  various  other  countries  ;  217  of  these  were  merchants,  91 
mechanics,  128  farmers,  34  laborers,  55  mariners,  artists,  milliners, 
seamstresses,  &c. ;  leaving  the  balance  of  729,  or  nearly  two-thirds  of 
the  ivhole,  without  any  occupation,  or  even  the  pretence  of  one.  Now 
it  is  by  no  means  probable  that  more  than  one-half  of  those  pretending 
to  have  the  above  occupations  come  to  this  country  without  the  means 
for  the  prosecution  of  their  vocation.  The  destiny  of  a  large  part  of 
such  thus  unprovided  for,  and  of  the  729  who  made  no  pretence  to  a  busi- 
ness of  any  kind,  is  too  clearly  shown  by  the  continually  rapid  increase 
and  extent  of  our  public  and  private  charities,,  and  by  the  alarming 
numbers,  and  varied  character  of  criminal  offences  in  this  city  and 
county.  But  of  the  217  merchants  who  should  be  excluded  from  the 
overwhelming  proportion  of  those  liable  to  become  a  tax  and  a  burden, 
from  their  having  no  jirofessional  business  during  times  of  general 
distress,  and  when  our  own  native  and  established  mechanics  were  out  of 
employ,  it  is  quite  certain  the  greater  part  were  American  merchants, 
mainly  from  this  city,  and  probably  possessed  of  considerable  wealth. 
Again,  the  laborers  are  to  be  classed  with  those  having  no  particular 
professional  trade  or  business.  Deducting,  therefore,  but  one-half 
from  the  number  of  reputed  merchants,  one-half  from  those  of  the 
various  reported  occupations,  and  the  34  laborers,  and  you  have  but 
129  out  of  the  1,256,  as  certain  to  have  had  the  requisite  means  for 
successful  competition  in  business,  and  a  permanent  support  for  them- 
selves and  families.  Another  fact  to  be  still  more  particularly  noticed 
is,  that,  among  the  farmers,  mechanics,  and  all  the  other  enumerated 
occupations,  are  included  the  ivife  and  all  the  children ;  so  that  if  each 
male  head  of  the  family  had,  beside  his  wife,  but  two  children,  it  will 
be  seen  that  three-fourths  of  the  before  mentioned  number  are  to  be 
deducted  therefrom  ;  and  hence,  that  the  supposed  229  independent 


110  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

alien  passengers  during  tliis  time  is,  indeed,  but  76  !  and  if  we  sup- 
pose the  267  citizens  of  the  United  States  to  be  justly  excluded,  and 
as  having  means  for  returning  to  their  established  vocations,  and  apply 
the  facts  to  the  989  alien  passengers,  we  shall  have  bnt  ffty-four  indi- 
viduals out  of  the  whole  number,  or  owe  only  in  every  eighteen  alien 
passengers  who  luere  of  the  2W exceptionable  character  above  mentioned. 

Now,  this  may  be  considered  just  data  for  both  previous  and  subse- 
quent time ;  and  though  these  particulars  are  introduced  in  this  place, 
they  will  be  seen  to  be  illustrated  in  answer  to  other  interrogatories, 
and  to  have  more  immediate  reference  thereto.     But,  in  order  to  render 
these  still  more  plain  and  satisfactory,  I  will  add  farther  particulars 
from  the  year  1836,  which  will  likewise  show  in  a  striking  manner 
the  nature  of  our  foreign  population^  and  the  professional  character  of 
those  who  come  to  obtain  a  livelihood  among  us,  together  with  the 
numbers  of  aliens  from  different  parts  of  the  world. 

During  the  three  first  quarters  of  1836,  there  were  reported  to  have 
been  among  the  passengers  1,029  merchants,  65  clergymen,  95  physi- 
cians, 5,667  mechanics,  37  artists,  48  milliners,  3,807  farmers,  103 
dressmakers,  93  mariners,  and  3  seamstresses.     Total  10,947. 
Of  these,  there  were  citizens  of  the  United  states        -  -     1,361 

Aliens  from  Great  Britain,  Ireland,  and  Scotland       -  -   26,698 

France      ------     2,352 

Germany  -  -  -  -  -      9,889 

Switzerland  -  -  -  -  -         337 

Prussia     -  -  -  -  -  -319 

Denmark  -----        296 

Nova  Scotia  .  .  _  -  _        239 

Spain         ------         108 

West  Indies  -----  87 

Italy  ------  40 

New  Brunswick    -----  32 

Turkey     -  -  ■  -  -  -  2 

From  various  countries     -  -  -  -     7,244 


Total     -------  49,004 

Of  the  2,188  wlio  arrived  during  the  first  quarter,  1,419  had  no 
occupation;  of  the  26/J24  during  the  second  quarter,  16,530  had  no 
occupation;  and  of  the  19,892  during  the  third  quarter,  14,485  had  no 
occupation;  making  no  less  than  38,057  aliens  cast  upon  the  citizens 
of  New  York  alone  in  nine  months,  or  47,571  Avithin  the  year,  without 
occupations  of  any  kind  whatever  ;  or,  in  other  words,  luere  paupers ! 
Deducting  the  1,361  citizens,  and  within  the  above  brief  period,  we 
had  47,643  added  to  our  foreign  population. 

The  total  of  49,004  for  nine  months,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind, 
does  not  include  those  who  arrived  in  vessels  of  less  than  forty  tons, 
the  great  numbers  making  their  way  from  the  Canadas,  nor  those  con- 
tinually coming  from  other  places.  Now,  if  we  apply  the  same  crite- 
rion as  that  applied  to  the  first  quarter  of  the  present  year,  after 
deducting  the  1^,361  passengers,  who  were  citizens,  and  generally  mer- 
chants of  the  United  States,  (which  conclusively  shows  the  facts  in  the 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  Ill 

case,)  we  shall  have  had  hut  1,198  who  were  furnished  with  means 
for  the  support  of  themselves  and  those  depending  upon  them. 

Among  the  artists  are  included  "hand-organ  grinders,"  &c.;  and 
among  the  others,  estimated  as  having  some  kind  of  professional  busi- 
ness, there  were  those  equally  precarious  and  useless,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  utter  impossibility  of  by  far  the  larger  portion  of  those  actually 
having  a  good  business,  or  even  of  tliose  skilled  in  business,  finding 
employment,  wdiile  so  many  thousands  of  our  native  mechanics  are 
thrown  out  of  employ. 

Thus,  then,  out  of  47,643  aliens  arriving  in  this  city  in  nine  months, 
46,445,  or  one  in  every  tldrty-seven,  possessed  no  adequate  means  to 
establish  themselves  in  business  or  to  ensure  success  and  support. 

It  will  be  seen  that  of  the  above  number  of  alien  passengers,  26,698 
Avere  from  Ireland,  Great  Britain,  and  Scotland,  which  exceeds  one- 
half  of  the  whole  by  5,753. 

The  number  of  passengers  from  foreign  countries  who  arrived  in  the 
United  States  during  the  same  year,  viz:  1836,  according  to  the 
reports  of  the  custom-houses,  was  80^952. 

Males  --_.---         51,942 

Females       -------         29,010 


80,952 


Of  which  were  born  in  the  United  States   -  -  -  4,013 

Aliens  -------         76,939 


80,952 


There  were  natives  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland    -             -  47,792 

British  American  colonies  -----  2,681 

Germany     -------  20,142 

France         -------  4,443 

Prussia        -------  568 

Switzerland              _--__-  445 

Denmark     -------  414 

Holland       -            -            -            -            -            -            -  297 

Mexico         -------  797 

Texas           -------  698 

Cuba            -            -            -            -            -            -            -  516 

All  other  countries              -            _            -            _            -  2,152 


Total 76,939 

Of  these,  were  landed  at — 

New  York              ------  56,578 

Baltimore               ------  6,058 

New  Orleans          ------  4,966 

Boston       -------  2,690 

Philadelphia -  2,147 

Portland                ------  1^621 


112  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND   PAUPERS. 

Passamaqiioddy     ---.--         1,471 
All  other  ports      ------         1,408 


Total 76,939 

These  data  having  been  obtained  througli  the  custom-liouses,  they 
do  not  agree,  as  to  the  numbers  who  arrived  into  the  port  of  Kew  York 
during  that  year,  with  those  shown  in  the  mayor's  ofl&ce,  by  a  differ- 
ence of  3,963.  The  same  discrepancy  may,  and  undoubtedly  does, 
exist  in  reference  to  all  the  places  enumerated  above.  It  will  be  seen, 
also,  to  correspond  Avith  the  differences  noticed  in  previous  years. 
The  above  differs,  indeed,  from  that  now  actually  found  at  the  custom- 
house, for  the  particulars  are  embodied  in  the  Secretary  of  State's 
Department,  although  purporting  to  have  been  derived  from  the  first- 
mentioned  source.  While  the  custom-house  exhibits  the  number  of 
passengers  in  1836  at  58,000,  the  State  Department  presents  it  at 
56,578,  making  the  difference  2,019. 

It  would  appear,  according  to  the  Secretary's  report,  that  there  ar- 
rived into  this  port,  in  1836,  more  than  half  of  the  whole  who  arrived 
into  the  United  States,  by  a  difference  of  18,109,  or  more  than  two- 
thirds  by  5,285  ;  i.  e.,  while  56,578  arrived  at  New  York,  but  20,361 
-arrived  at  all  other  places  within  the  country.  According  to  the  facts 
within  the  mayor's  office,  however,  which  are  unquestionable  evidence 
upon  this  point,  and  which  give  the  number  as  having  arrived  here 
in  that  year  at  60,541,  and  assuming  the  Secretary's  report  as  to  other 
places  to  be  correct,  there  were  within  a  fraction  (542)  of  three-fourths 
of  the  ivhoJe  who  arrived  at  the  port  of  New  York.  From  this,  it 
might  appear  that  few  other  parts  of  our  country  are  affected  by  the 
multitude  of  foreigners  who  are  continually  pouring  into  our  city ;  but 
it  should  be  understood  that  from  this  city  they  are  flooding  the  inte- 
rior towns  and  the  far  west.  Were  all  to  mingle  permanently  with 
our  citizens,  we  should  have  had.  sliue  1830,  an  annual  addition  of 
more  than  50,000,  or  within  seven  years  more  than  700,000  souls, 
besides  our  natural  increase,  and  the  superaddition  of  our  own  coun- 
trymen. 

I  think,  with  others,  that  the  average  number  of  foreigners  who 
have  arrived  into  the  United  States  annually  for  the  last  few  years 
may  be  ftiirly  estimated  at  100,000.  Taking  this  estimate,  then,  for 
data,  since  1830,  and  we  have  added  to  our  population  within  that 
period  750,000  aliens — of  a  character,  too,  which  will  be  hereafter 
noticed,  though  at  all  times  understood.  Assuming  the  same  num- 
bers for  the  following  two  quarters  as  that  taken  for  the  first  two  of 
this  year,  and  an  increase  of  but  one-fourth  for  the  subsequent  two 
years,  (which  cannot  be  considered  an  unreasonable  estimate,)  and  we 
shall  have  had  within  ten  years,  from  1830  to  1840,  or  the  brief  period 
of  one  census,  an  addition  oione  million  and  ffty  thousand  foreigners! 
But  the  probability  is,  that  the  increase  will  be  in  a  still  greater  and 
progressive  ratio.  Though  I  am  not  disposed  to  enter  into  the  calcu- 
lation as  to  the  numbers  or  character  of  such  immense  additions  to  our 
citizens,  yet  the  consideration  is  calculated  to  awaken  the  attention  of 
our  fellow-countrymen  to  the  probable  results.     Calculating  the  num- 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  113 

bers  and  characters  of  the  aliens  wlio  arrive  in  other  ports  of  the 
United  States  by  the  same  estimates  as  those  applicable  to  this  city 
for  1836,  as  before  shown,  and  we  find  that  95,142  are  to  be  classed 
as  those  dependent  aliens  we  have  mentioned.  Increase  or  add  to  the 
total  number  of  passengers,  and  the  same  alarming  proportions  exist. 
To  one  jealous  of  our  native  rights  and  ardently  attached  to  our  insti- 
tutions, these  things  are  calculated  to  excite  even  more  apprehension 
than  heretofore  exhibited  ;  nor  have  those  who  are  equally  advocates 
of  religious  freedom  less  reason  to  apprehend  the  result  of  this  condi- 
tion of  things,  and  the  rapid  increase  of  those  devoted  to  principles 
and  dogmas  diametrically  opposed  to  their  opinions  of  religious  liberty 
and  the  character  of  our  republican  government.  In  addition  to  this, 
the  natural  increase  of  such  devotees  will  by  no  means  diminish  the 
causes  of  such  fears,  since  the  same  sentiments  are  uniformly  propa- 
gated from  parents  to  their  numerous  offsprings.  What,  then,  must 
be  the  reflections,  and  what  the  conclusions  of  every  honest  and  intel- 
ligent patriot,  in  view  of  the  present,  in  connexion  with  the  prospects 
of  the  future  ! 

The  number  of  alien  passengers  will  be  seen  to  have  doubled  since 
1830  ;  that  is,  in  1830  there  were  30,224,  while  in  1836  there  were 
€0,541.  May  we  not  infer  from  this  fact  that  they  will  likewise 
double  during  the  succeeding  ten  years,  so  that  we  shall  have  tivo  mil- 
lions for  the  following  census?  These,  united  as  they  ever  have  been, 
and  as  they  probably  ever  will  be,  and  acting  in  concert  with  the  many 
millions  already  in  the  country,  will  be  sufficiently  powerful  of  them- 
selves to  change  the  character  of  our  national  institutions ;  but,  when 
acting  in  behalf  of  one  or  more  foreign  potentates,  and  their  legions, 
what  reasonable  hope  could  we  entertain  for  the  permanency  of  our 
liberties? 

The  preceding  statements  answer,  as  j^articularlj'  as  time  will  per- 
mit me  to  do,  the  first  three  of  your  interrogatories,  viz:  "What 
number  of  emigrants  arrive  annually,  and  have  done  for  the  last  ten 
years?"  "From  what  countries  have  they  emigrated?"  "What 
proportion  bring  with  them  the  means  of  supporting  themselves  and 
families?"  For  general  purposes,  it  will  be  noticed,  the  particulars 
given  for  the  year  1836  are  deemed  to  be  sufficiently  accurate ;  still 
they  may  be  carried  out  to  great  advantage. 

To  the  questions :  "  How  is  the  expense  of  the  transportation  hither 
of  such  as  are  poor,  defrayed,  and  by  whom  ;  and  what  proportion  of 
foreign  emigrants  are  paupers  ?"  it  is  not  easy  to  give  precise  answers, 
though  the  latter  question  is  partially  answered,  it  will  have  been 
seen,  by  the  data  afforded  by  the  results  of  1836.  Certain  it  is  that 
great  numbers  who  may  not  have  been  paupers  in  their  own  country 
become  so  in  this,  inasmuch  as  they  come  here  without  any  provision 
for  the  future,  without  friends  in  this  country,  and  without  any  ^^ros- 
pects  beyond  the  moment.  Laborers  leave  their  employment,  and 
mechanics  tlieir  business,  and  take  passage  for  this  country  with  barely 
means  to  defray  their  expenses  hither.  I  am  led  to  think  that  this  is 
the  case  with  by  far  the  larger  portion  of  emigrants,  and  particularly 
with  the  Irish.  They,  or  a  majority  of  them,  have  been  induced  to 
believe  that  they  will  find  little  or  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  employ- 
H.  Rep.  359 8 


114  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

ment  and  high  wages  on  arriving  in  this  country.  Chagrin  and  dis- 
appointment take  the  place  of  sanguine  hopes  and  exalted  anticipa- 
tions ;  such  oftentimes  become  desperate  and  wreckless  and  resort  to 
theft  or  charitable  institutions.  These  anticipations  have  been  induced, 
in  a  great  measure,  no  doubt,  by  the  representations  of  friends  in  this- 
country,  and  by  those  who  are  interested  in  their  transportation  ; 
regardless,  as  most  of  them  are,  both  of  truth  and  of  justice.  Many 
of  them,  after  disposing  of  their  stock  in  trade,  or  their  various  imple- 
ments of  business,  have  barely  a  sufficiency  to  defray  their  expenses 
to  America,  and  consequently,  no  resources  for  the  subsistence  of  their 
families.  Pauperism,  therefore,  is  the  almost  inevitable  result  from 
these  things.  For  the  last  two  years,  while  great  numbers  of  those 
who  have  preceded  them,  and  while,  in  fact,  our  own  countrymen 
have  been  mostly  unemployed,  we  could  hardly  suppose  a  diiferent 
result.  Wretchedness  and  crime  ensue,  and  hence  our  taxes  and  fears 
have  become  also  great.  Large  numbers,  it  is  true,  have  spread 
abroad  into  neighboring  towns  and  States  ;  but  there  too  are  great 
numbers  destined  to  wretchedness  and  want.  A  fruitful  source  of 
pauperism  results  from  the  practice  of  fathers  of  families  leaving  the 
city,  in  quest  of  employment,  no  doubt,  and  thereby  compelling  the 
public  authorities  to  support  the  wife  and  children.  Should  such  for- 
tunately succeed  in  finding  work,  it  is  very  rare  that  they  contribute 
much,  if  anything,  towards  the  maintenance  of  their  families  ;  and 
thus  it  is,  in  part,  that  our  charitable  institutions  are  filled.  The 
children  are  sent  wandering  throughout  the  city,  begging  alms;  in 
this  the  mother  finds  it  advantageous  to  participate,  and  she  often 
finds  it  a  profitable  business  withal. 

It  has  been  found  that  much  the  largest  number  of  such  poor  and 
idle  persons  are  from  Ireland  and  Great  Britain.  There  are  also  con- 
siderable numbers  of  such  deported  from  Havre  and  ports  of  Germany  ; 
but  the  Swiss,  Scotch,  and  many  others  from  interior  towns  and  vil- 
lages on  the  continent,  have  at  least  the  merit  of  being  industrious, 
and  some  few  bring  with  them  the  means  of  support. 

As  before  stated,  it  is  quite  impossible  for  us  to  ascertain  exactly 
what  number  are  actually  forced  or  hired  to  leave  their  country, 
because  they  are  influenced  by  causes  generally  operating  secretly.  It 
is  but  natural  to  supjiose,  however,  that  great  exertions  are  made  by 
the  municipal  authorities  to  rid  the  towns  and  cities  of  vast  numbers 
of  paupers,  and  of  the  vicious  and  irreclaimable;  and  where  else  than 
to  America  can  they  send  them?  That  is  the  settled  policy  of  such 
authorities  thus  to  throw  oif  their  expensive  poor,  and  to  cast  them 
upon  our  shores,  is  not  only  not  denied,  but  publicly  confessed.  Tbeir 
own  languaore  is,  "to  sret  rid  of  the  most  vicious  and  irreclaimable 
paupers,  by  sending  them  to  America."'  Large  sums  have  been  raised 
for  this  purpose.  Private  contributions,  public  disbursements  and 
taxes,  have  alike  contributed  to  this  end;  and  foreign  presses  have 
announced  this  witli  unblushing  eftrontery.  Parliament  has  been 
petitioned  for  this  purpose,  to  sanction  the  raising  of  money  to  carry 
on  the  business  more  successfully,  well  satisfied,  as  the  petitioners 
were,  that  the  American  })eople  will  very  generously,  nay,  must,  sup- 
port all  such  as  it  may  suit  their  convenience  to  cast  upon  our  shores. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  11 

There  was  raised  at  one  time  by  a  few  towns  £2^473  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  320  paupers  to  this  country. 

The  superintendent  of  our  almshouse  states  to  me  that  he  has  seen 
one  of  these  passenger  s\n])s  filed  luifh  paupers  alone.  Again,  he  says, 
"  When  entire  cargoes  have  come  out,  it  has  been  ascertained  that  the 
parishes  had  paid  their  expenses  ;  and  we  frequently  hear  the  same 
thing  from  straggling  pauper  passengers.  Indeed,  they  have  no  other 
mode  of  getting  here.  It  is  common  for  them  to  walk  directly  from 
the  ship  to  the  alms-house,  and  ask  for  admission!"  It  appears  from 
printed  facts,  that,  of  the  alien  passengers  who  arrived  here  during 
one  month  of  last  year,  more  than  one  hundred  applied  to  the  commis- 
sioners of  the  alms-house  immediately  after  their  arrival;  most  of  ivhom 
had  their  passages  imid  by  the  parishes  from  luhich  they  were  sent. 

The  report  of  the  British  commissioners  for  examining  the  poor-law 
system  proves  that  the  wretched  ^nd  depraved  arc  sent  here  per  ad- 
vice, and  as  the  most  certain  means  of  successfully  ridding  the  British 
people  of  expense,  trouble,  and  crime.  Thus  the  charities  which  be- 
long to  the  unfortunate  of  our  own  country  are  absorbed  in  supporting 
worthless  and  miserable  mendicants,  criminals,  and  fugitives  from 
abroad. 

The  commissioners  of  our  almshouse  also  state  that  ' '  In  seven- 
tenths  of  the  applicants  for  '  out-door'  relief  during  the  past  winter, 
the  husbands  of  the  Irishwomen  making  the  applications  were  out  of 
the  city.  They  were,  however,"  he  continues  to  remark,  "  very  par- 
ticular to  be  here  to  vote  at  the  spring  election." 

It  is  stated,  on  authority  said  to  be  entitled  to  credit,  that  "the 
steerage  passages  of  more  than  30,000  persons  have  been  paid  in  Ire- 
land, England,  and  Scotland,  to  enable  them  to  leave  there  for  Ame- 
rica ;  most  of  whom  have  arrived  at  this  port !" 

An  English  gentleman  recently  stated  that  he  had  seen  the  poor 
marched  down  in  droves  from  the  poor-houses  to  the  ships  which  were 
to  take  them  to  this  country,  accompanied  by  the  superintendents, 
who  settled  for  their  passages  !  The  commissioners  still  further  state 
that  there  are  not  over  onefourth  of  the  emigrants  who  come  to  this 
country  that  possess  means  to  afford  a  comfortable  support  for  them- 
selves and  families  on  arriving  here.  The  great  body  of  such  come 
with  the  expectation  that  they  shall  find  immediate  employment ;  and 
if  not,  that  we  shall  provide  for  them  by  charitable  means. 

From  the  report  of  the  resident  physician  of  the  hospital  last  year, 
as  imbodied  in  the  annual  message  of  the  mayor  of  this  city,  it  appears 
that  of  the  whole  number  admitted  to  that  institution  for  the  year, 
viz :  1_,209,  only  20G  were  native  Americans  !  This,  it  will  be  per- 
ceived, is  in  the  proportion  of  one  American  to  six  foreigners  ;  or  in 
the  proportion  of  one  to  every  forty-four  of  the  latter  in  our  city,  and 
of  twelve  hundred  and  thirty-three  of  the  former.  During  the  year 
endin<r  in  Eebruarv  last,  there  had  been  assisted  from  the  almshouse 
8,300  poor  ;  more  than  two-thirds  of  whom  were  foreigners  !  The 
proportion,  as  compared  with  the  relative  population  of  the  city,  of 
foreign  poor  to  that  oi  native  poor,  beside  the  5,000  who  have  received 
out-door  assistance,  three-fourths  of  whom  were  foreigners,  and  the 
vast  number  supported  by  private  charity,  will  have  been  seen  by  a 


116  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

compcarison  in  the  returns  of  January  of  last  year — i.  e.  982  foreigners 
to  227  Americans — to  be  as  one  to  everij  forty-six  foreign,  and  as  one 
to  every  eleven  hundred  and  hventy-three  Americans ;  or  more  than 
twenty-two  to  one  ! 

The  progressive  increase  in  the  numbers  of  foreign  paupers  cannot 
be  otherwise  than  alarming.  The  expenses  for  their  support  will  be 
seen  by  the  reports  of  tlie  municipal  authorities.  On  the  8th  of  Sep- 
tember last  there  Avere  3,332  persons  in  the  bridewell  almshouse  and 
penitentiary,  2,045  of  whom  were  foreigners.  This,  it  is  said,  ex- 
hibits an  increase  of  eighty  ^9cr  cent,  of  foreigners  since  September, 
1836.  In  view  of  these  facts  the  commissioners  remark:  "This  ex- 
hibit justifies  the  demand  for  increased  commutation  fees,  (which  have 
averaged  from  two  to  three  dollars  for  each  person,)  and  points  to  the 
necessity  of  enforcing  all  laws  touching  the  introduction  of  foreign 
emigrants." 

On  the  8th  of  May  last,  the  number  of  persons  in  the  almshouse 
alone  was  1,342  ;  of  these  *719  were  foreigners.  Of  the  135  in  the  city 
hospital  at  the  above  date,  105  were  foreigners  ;  or  one  to  every  424 
of  the  comparative  population  :  while  of  the  Americans  there  was  one 
to  every  8,500  ;  there  being  but  30  persons  of  the  255,000  of  our  pop- 
ulation !  At  the  same  date  there  were  in  the  lunatic  asylum  179  per- 
sons, 110  of  whom  were  foreigners  ;  being  69  Americans  to  110 
foreigners,  or  one  to  every  49  of  the  latter,  and  one  to  every  3,695  of 
the  former  ! 

Of  the  621  in  the  penitentiary,  326  were  foreigners  ;  of  the  134  in 
the  bridewell,  73  were  foreigners  ;  and  of  the  children  supported  on 
the  Long  Island  farms,  273  were  of  foreign  birth.  It  should  be  noticed 
that  a  large  proportion  of  the  children  who  are  classed  as  Americans 
were  born  here  of  foreign  parents,  and  many  soon  after  their  arrival. 

Besides  the  charitable  institutions  heretofore  enumerated,  there  are 
an  extensive  "City  Hospital,"  "Seaman's  Retreat,"  "Sailors'  Snug 
Harbor,"  and  nearly  twentv  othef  charitable  establishments  for  the 
relief  of  the  poor,  the  sick,  &c.  ;  in  all  of  which  foreigners  enjoy  the 
proportionable  advantages. 

The  annual  expense  of  our  almshouse,  since  1830,  by  which  wemay 
easily  ascertain  the  relative  proportion  of  foreign  and  American  poor, 
through  the  comparative  numbers  before  given,  is  as  follows  : 

In  1830  -            -            ...  - 

In  1831  -----. 

In  1832  ------ 

In  1833  ------ 

In  1834  ------ 

In  1835  ------ 

In  1836  -----. 

In  1837  -            -            -            -            - 

In  1838  (say  for  six  months  of  this  year) 

Total  amount  for  Si  vears 
Estimating  the  expenses  for  the  support  of  the  foreign  poor  in  the 


$125,021 

66 

134,819 

24 

139.484 

45 

124,852 

96 

119,211 

77 

147,693 

87 

178.430 

88 

205.506 

63 

125,000 

00 

1,300,021 

46 

FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  117 

proportion  of  their  numbers,  (wliicli  will  be  seen  to  average,  perhaps, 
more  than  three-fourths  of  the  whole,)  there  will  have  been  expended 
in  their  behalf  $975,010  10  since  1830  ;  and  but  $325,005  36  for  the 
support  of  our  own  poor  !  Considering  this  amount  as  in  the  propor- 
tion of  the  numbers  coming  to  other  places  in  this  country,  which  has 
been  estimated  as  equal  to  those  arriving  at  this  port ;  and  the  amount 
expended  for  foreign  poor  within  this  time  is  $1,950^032  20,  while 
our  own  countrymen  have  realized  but  one-fourth  part  of  this  vast 
sum.  Yet  even  this  is  by  no  means  the  amount  expended  for  such 
poor  ;  for  the  5,000  which  have  been  assisted  "  out  of  doors,"  and  all 
those  sui^ported  by  twenty  other  institutions,  and  by  private  charities, 
are  not  estimated.  Besides,  I  doubt  much  whether  it  is  easy  to  arrive 
at  the  exact  expenses.  The  commissioners  of  the  almshouse  assure 
me  that  the  expenses  of  the  almshouse,  bridewell,  and  penitentiary, 
were  $250,000  for  the  year  1836. 

I  have  not  now  at  hand  the  expenses  of  the  hospital  and  the  vari- 
ous other  charitable  institutions,  in  which  foreigners  enjoy  about  the 
same  proportion  mentioned,  and  which  nobly  characterize  the  liberal- 
ity (I  might  say  ill-advised  liberality)  of  our  citizens.  "  In  fact," 
(to  use  the  language  in  the  report  of  a  committee  of  the  common 
council  of  this  cit}^,  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  alarming  extent  of 
these  evils,)  "our  i^ublic  charities  are  principally  for  the  benefit  of 
these  foreigners."  Again:  "the  immense  number  of  persons  arriv- 
ing at  this  port,  fleeing  from  the  poverty,  starvation,  and  oppression 
of  Europe,  is  calculated  certainly  not  only  to  excite  our  sympathy,  but 
to  create  a  well-founded  alarm  as  to  the  results  of  our  municipal  pros- 
perity, as  well  as  the  character  and  morality  of  our  population.  The 
greater  number  of  those  emigrants  are  absolutely  penniless,  and,  reek- 
ing with  the  accumulated  filth  which  long  confinement  on  ship-board 
and  an  habitual  want  of  cleanliness  produce,  they  almost  all,  imme- 
diately on  their  arrival,  roam  the  streets  a  band  of  houseless  mendi- 
cants, or  apply  to  your  almshouse  for  succor.  Crime  succeeds 
destitution;  your  prisons  are  filled,  your  hospitals  are  crowded  loith  them, 
and  your  public  treasury  is  spent  .upon  those  who  never  contributed  a 
cent  to  the  general  welfare  I  " 

There  are  numerous  facts  which  might  be  here  introduced,  and 
other  opinions  of  our  public  authorities  to  show  the  extent  of  "this 
intolerable  burden  upon  us,"  but  time  does  not  now  permit  me  to  de- 
tail them. 

The  average  number  of  those  Avho  receive  tlie  charity  of  the  alms- 
house, "out  door,"  (for  the  public  buildings  have  been  so  much 
crowded  as  to  exclude  the  majority  of  applicants,)  during  1837-'38, 
was  5,000,  more  than  two-thirds  of  whom  were  foreigners.  During 
the  past  winter  the  applications  for  charity  were  very  numerous,  as 
may  be  seen  from  one  Aveek,  in  which  2,744  heads  of  families  were 
applicants,  or  13,720  individuals,  three-fourths  of  whom  were  for- 


eigners. 


What  proportion  of  the  inmates  of  poor-houses  are  native  Ameri- 
can citizens  ?  "  In  reply  to  this,  in  addition  to  what  has  already 
been  stated,  the  commissioner  of  our  almshouse  informs  me,  (to  use 
his  own  language,)  "  I  think  the  average  number  not  over  one-third ; 


118  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

and  I  have  ioimd,  on  examining  the  poor-houses  of  other  cities  and 
towns,  that  this  proportion  is  about  kept  up."  He  furtlier  says,  "the 
native  citizen  will  not  go  to  the  almshouse  unless  his  circumstances 
admit  of  no  improvement ;  while,  on  the  contrary,  an 'Irishman  wants 
to  go  there  lolicnever  his  toe  aches  ;  a  Grcrman  is  somewliat  adverse  to 
going  there  ;  Englishmen  are  the  most  impudent  and  troublesome  in- 
mates ;  Swedes,  Norwegians,  French,  and  Spanish,  enter  in  limited 
numbers.  It  is  to  be  observed,  (continues  he,)  that  a  very  considera- 
ble proportion  of  our  foreign  paupers  are  introduced  through  the 
Canadas,  New  Jersey,  and  the  Eastern  States;  and  we  have  to  sup- 
j)ort  them  without  receiving  bond  or  commutation  money." 

It  may  also  be  stated,  in  passing,  that  the  relative  number  of  for- 
eigners supported  at  the  almshouse  is  reported  by  a  committee  of  the 
board  of  aldermen  as  greater  than  that  suggested  above.  They  say, 
"  The  almshouse  is  full — containing,  at  this  moment,  3,074 !  of  which, 
about  three-fourths  are  foreigners  !  " 

On  the  1st  of  January  of  last  year,  982  foreigners  and  227  native 
Americans  had  been  admitted  to  the  hospital  of  Bellevue.  Admitting 
the  same  proportion  in  the  almshouse,  and  the  relative  number  of 
foreigners,  as  compared  with  that  of  our  city  poj^ulation,  v/ill  be  seen, 
as  before  stated,  as  one  to  every  46,  and  that  of  Americans  as  1  to 
every  1,123.  "  How  many  more  foreigners  live  upon  private  chari- 
ties, (says  a  late  report  of  the  Native  American  Association,)  let  the 
swarms  of  mendicants  who  daily  and  nightly  throng  our  streets  at- 
test." 

Of  the  866  paupers  received  into  the  Boston  House  of  Eefuge  in 
1836,  516  were  foreigners  :  and  of  the  paupers  admitted  into  the 
house  of  industry  in  that  city,  within  something  less  than  six  mouths, 
during  the  past  year,  there  were  but  52  Bostoniaus  to  160  foreigners  ! 
The  moral  character  of  these  was  equally  exceptionable  ;  for  it  is  stated 
that  four-fifths  of  the  men  and  three-fifths  of  the  women  had  been  in- 
temperate, as  were  also  the  parents  of  nearly  all  the  children  ! 

Relative  to  the  question,  "Are  there  within  your  knowledge,  or 
have  you  been  informed  of,  any  frauds  practised  in  procuring  certifi- 
cates of  naturalization  under  the  present  laAvs  of  the  United  States? 
and  if  so,  how,  and  by  what  means,  are  such  frauds  practiced  and 
what  remedy  can  you  suggest  for  their  prevention  ?"  I  should  com- 
muaicate  numerous  facts  ;  but  such  has  been  the  lamentable  indifier- 
ence  manifested  bv  the  bulk  of  our  citizens,  and  such  the  difiiculties 
thrown  in  our  way,  both  by  the  unknown  character  of  the  individuals 
obtaining  the  certificates  of  naturalization,  and  the  intrigue  and  as- 
surance of  those  interested  in  obtaining  them,  that  we  find  it  at  no 
little  risk  and  trouble  in  fastening  the  frauds  upon  individuals  ;  in- 
deed, as  our  laws  are  administered,  it  would  seem  impossible  to  convict 
these  men. 

Several  cases,  so  glaring  and  outrageous  as  to  involve  the  authori- 
ties, should  they  leave  them  to  pass  unnoticed,  have  been  tried;  but 
it  has  been  found  impossible  to  convict  the  perjured  to  i)unishment. 
I  herewith  forward  you  a  report  of  a  trial  which  recently  took  place 
in  relation  to  this  subject.  I  am  not  prepared  to  say  that  the  charge 
of  the  judge  or  the  verdict  of  the  jury  in  this  case  was  not  agreeable 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  119 

to  law  :  but  the  tacts  evolved  by  the  trial  develop  some  of  the  means 
by  which  so  many  thousands  of  foreigners  are  annually  made  citizens. 
Althouo;h  the  fact  that  a  wholesale  business  has  been  carried  on  in 
thus  manufacturing  American  citizens  has  been  notorious  for  many 
years,  and  notwithstanding  the  complaints  of  our  native  citizens  have 
been  so  long  made  and  so  often  repeated,  yet  nothing  would  seem  to 
have  aroused  our  legislators  to  a  sense  of  the  evil.  The  case  in  ques- 
tion (which  is  one  of  frequent  occurrence)  is  illustrative  of  the  long 
continued  practice  of  some  of  our  courts  ;  so  long  and  so  often  re- 
peated, that  much  less  is  thought  of  it  than  it  merits.  Indeed,  our 
most  patriotic  citizens  have  been  compelled,  however  reluctantly,  to 
consider  these  things  as  ^^  necessary  evils,''  and  have  quietly  submitted 
to  the  outrage  upon  our  laws,  and  the  painful  conviction  that  our 
rights  and  our  liberties  are  fast  being  wrested  from  us.  The  opinion 
of  very  many  most  respectable  citizens  is,  that  one-fourth  part,  at 
least,  of  the  certificates  of  naturalization  are  obtained  in  a  manner 
similar  to  those  indicated  in  the  case  alluded  to.  The  number  thus 
obtained  can  be  conceived  by  the  vast  numbers  made  voters  at  our 
elections.  It  is  truly  painful  to  one  jealous  of  our  natural  and  dear- 
ly-bought rights,  and  ardently  attached  to  our  political  liberties,  to 
see,  without  any  apparent  means  of  redress,  his  dearest  privileges  and 
the  best  interest  of  his  country  so  recklessly  bartered  away,  and  made 
the  sport  of  party  strife  ;  yet  such  has  been  his  misfortune,  in  this 
city,  for  many  years  past.  To  the  mad  desperation  of  party  spirit,  in 
fact,  are  we  to  attribute  the  extent  and  continuance  of  these  evils. 
The  almost  equally  balanced  power  of  the  two  contending  parties  here, 
has  impelled  rash  and  over-heated  politicians  to  resort  to  this  one,  the 
most  successful,  yet,  at  the  same  time  the  most  baneful  and  destruc- 
tive, means  of  adding  strength  and  numbers  to  their  cause,  regard- 
less of  the  fatal  effects  which  necessarily  must  fall  upon  our  institutions 
and  all  else  we  hold  dear.  Were  I  to  add  that  this  spirit  has  infused 
itself  into  some  of  our  courts,  and  evinced  itself  in  a  manner  in  which 
aliens  have  purchased,  for  a  bare  pittance,  the  sacred  rights  of  Ameri- 
can freemen^  I  should  but  reiterate  the  oinnions  of  my  fellow-citizens. 
Ihave  attempted  in  vain  to  obtain  access  to  the  books  in  which  the 
names  and  numbers  of  those  made  citizens  are  registered — those  only 
which  have  been  made  at  one  of  our  elections.  I  have  in  vain  in- 
quired of  the  clerks  and  of  the  judges  for  the  most  simple  verbal  infor- 
mation— even  the  number  naturalized  at  a  single  election  :  and  have 
been  promptly  and  cavalierly  repulsed  with  an  expression  which  it  is 
not  now  necessary  to  recapitulate.  This  want  of  success,  in  a  matter 
of  so  much  importance,  yet  of  so  little  trouble  to  communicate,  is  in 
accordance  with  that  experienced  by  many  others  of  our  fellow-citizens. 
Foreigners  coming  into  the  courts  in  bodies,  usually  attended  by  a 
few  interested  individuals,  and  the  slight  forms  of  law  having  been 
hastily  gone  through  with,  (even  if  these  trifling  preliminaries  are 
discharged  at  all,)  the  ignorant  and  generally  unknown  recipients  of 
our  greatest  blessing,  the  right  of  suftrage,  are  soon  dispatched,  with- 
out revealing  any  particulars  of  their  American  history.  Besides  this, 
great  care  is  commonly  taken  by  those  interested  in  the  vote  or  voters 
thus  secured  to  the  party  to  screen  the  facts  from  the  results  of  in- 


120  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

quiry.  Among  those  attending  on  such  occasions,  and  immediately 
interested  in  the  issue  of  the  business  transaction,  I  have  oftentimes 
seen  some  cLamorous  or  leading  politician  of  a  party,  but  more  fre- 
quently a  still  more  violent  partisan,  icho  is  a  foreigner.  "Whenever 
it  is  clearly  or  subsequently  known  that  certificates  have  been  unlaw- 
fully obtained,  it  is  very  rare  that  any  attempts  are  made  to  convict 
the  individual  before  the  United  States  courts.  The  facts  are  subjects 
of  a  temporary  discussion,  and  then  the  circumstance  rests  among  the 
things  of  the  day ;  besides,  there  appears  to  be  extreme  reluctance 
among  our  citizens  to  become  public  informers,  and  to  pursue  the  facts 
to  the  conviction  of  the  offenders  in  these  cases. 

During  the  last  election,  it  has  been  estimated  by  the  most  active 
and  distinguished  politicians  of  both  parties  that  from  three  to  five 
thousand  illegal  votes  were  polled  in  this  city — very  probable  a  still 
greater  number;  and  though,  in  numerous  cases,  frauds  are  well 
known,  yet  I  have  not  heard  of  a  solitary  instance  of  indictment  on 
that  account. 

Instances  have  occurred  in  which  individuals  have  sworn  to  facts  of 
a  similar  fraudulent  character,  and  that,  too,  where  some  forty  or  fifty 
participated  alike  in  the  transaction,  and  were  alike  liable  to  the  pen- 
alties of  the  law.  In  these  cases  all  were  foreigners,  and  the  circum- 
stance of  their  going  from  one  ward  to  another,  and  voting  in  direct 
violation  of  law,  is  notorious  at  every  election.  As  a  remedy  for  these 
last-mentioned  evils,  our  legislature  has  been  memorialized  for  the  pas- 
sage of  a  law  requiring  a  registration  of  voters,  but  party  spirit  has  in- 
terposed its  objections;  which,  in  point  of  fact,  have  been  nothing  more 
nor  less  than  that  such  a  law^  would  prevent  the  party  from  securing 
the  votes  w^hich  w^ould  be  thereby  excluded.  Here  is  a  strong  evi- 
dence of  the  force  of  party  feeling,  in  the  disposition,  however  sacred 
and  important  the  objects,  to  sacrifice  them  all  to  the  political  Jug- 
gernaut. The  prayers  of  the  petitioners  were  disregarded,  and  made 
to  yield  to  the  all-predominant  god  of  the  day. 

As  to  remedies  to  be  suggested  for  the  prevention  of  these  frauds,  it 
may  be  proper  to  name  a  few  only,  as  the  evils  complained  of  flow 
from  some  two  or  three  primary  causes.  The  power,  or  liberty,  to 
grant  certificates  of  naturalization  is,  by  the  present  law  of  the  United 
States  upon  the  subject  of  aliens,  extended  to  all  courts  having  a  seal, 
&c.  Hence  the  facilities  are  so  numerous  by  which  to  practice  frauds, 
and  the  pecuniary  advantages  resulting  from  the  granting  of  such 
certificates  so  much  divided,  that  it  is  a  well  known  matter  of  compe- 
tition among  the  courts.  The  legal  fees  on  such  occasions  afibrd  to 
the  courts  accustomed  to  grant  naturalization  papers  a  large  revenue. 
Supposing  but  the  number  heretofore  named  as  having  obtained  such 
papers  at  and  pending  the  two  elections  last  past  to  have  been  issued 
from  one  court  only,  at  but  |3  50  each,  the  court  will  have  realized  $11  ,- 
795  by  the  operation  during  one  year.  This  sum,  in  addition  to  that  de- 
rived from  its  usually  pressing  business,  renders  the  emoluments 
enormous.  It  is  not,  therefore,  a  matter  of  wonder  that  they  gladly 
naturalize  all  who  make  application,  and  that,  too,  without  i)utting 
such  questions  to  the  applicants  and  to  the  witnesses  as  would  deprive 
them  of  the  advantages  of  the  fee ;  nor  is  it  singular  that  the  clerk,  or 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  121 

such  as  may  have  the  favor  to  realize  a  considerable  portion  of  this 
sum,  should  hurry  through  the  few  ceremonies  without  regard  to  par- 
ticulars. Supposing  the  clerk  secures  one-lialf  of  this  item,  he  puts 
in  his  pocket  $5,8*.I7,  besides  his  other  profitable  fees.  No\r,  it  is 
well  known  that  a  particular  court  does  manufacture  by  far  the 
largest  portion  of  these  American  freemen ;  so  that  a  valuable  perqui- 
site is  secured,  which  it  is  very  important  to  the  fortunate  to  retain  or 
add  to.  In  this  spirit  of  competition  the  court  has  endeavored  to 
monopolize  this  profitable  kind  of  business,  and,  indeed,  did  so  for 
many  years ;  but  when  other  courts  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  share  of 
the  trade,  as  1  have  understood,  by  cutting  down  the  price  of  fees,  the 
price  of  the  former  was  regulated,  according  to  the  common  expres- 
sion, "  as  they  could  light  on  chaps."  In  some  instances  it  was  three 
dollars,  in  others  two,  in  others  one,  and  in  others  nothing.  Some, 
who  engaged  to  bring  all  they  wished  to  naturalize  to  that  market, 
were  accommodated  by  the  '■  lump,"  and  "  on  time."  One  of  these 
customers,  who  dealt  very  largely  in  this  way,  a  distinguished  parti- 
san and  municipal  officer,  had  run  up  a  certain  score  at  this  court, 
but  refused,  at  length,  to  pay  more  than  half  the  bill;  and  he  has  not, 
as  I  understand,  yet  paid  even  that.  These  are  serious  facts^  how- 
ever jocosely  treated. 

Such,  then,  being  the  manner  and  proceedings  of  some  of  our  courts 
in  reference  to  the  naturalization  of  foreigners,  it  will  be  seen  that 
they  are  not  suitable  tribunals  from  which  to  dispense  the  greatest 
blessing  known  to  Americans.  It  is  the  uniform  opinion  of  all  parties 
that  it  is  trifling  with  the  rights  of  our  countrymen,  and  sporting 
with  the  very  liberties  of  our  country. 

The  petitions  which  have  been  heretofore  forwarded  to  Congress 
have  prayed  that  the  power  to  grant  certificates  of  naturalization  may 
be  limited  to  the  Supreme  Courts  of  the  United  and  of  the  several 
States.  For  my  own  part,  I  think  such  powers  should  be  restricted 
to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  ;  or,  if  it  could  be,  to  the  cor- 
porate authorities  of  the  cities  or  towns,  where  the  applicants  reside, 
and  where  they  aie  to  vote.  The  great  advantage  of  this  is^  that  the 
merits  or  c|ualifications  of  the  applicants  are,  in  all  popular  assem- 
blages of  the  people's  representatives,  open  for  examination  and  dis- 
cussion ;  whereas,  now,  no  inquiries  are  made,  or  examinations  insti- 
tuted, or  discussions  had,  as  to  the  legal  rights  and  qualifications  of 
the  applicants.  There  is  now  neither  time  for  examination,  nor  the 
least  knowledge  of  the  individuals  applying  for  certificates,  unless  it 
happen  to  be  a  personal  or  political  acquaintance  wnth  the  person 
bringing  forward  the  foreigner  to  obtain  those  papers.  All  is  passed 
over  in  ignorance  or  in  confusion. 

Now,  the  name  of  each  and  every  individual  intending  to  become  a 
citizen  of  the  United  States,  should  be  required  to  be  advertised  in  the 
public  papers,  for  a  definite  period,  previous  to  his  becoming  natural- 
ized. His  former  occupation  and  residence  in  Europe,  together  with 
his  age,  might  also  be  required,  with  signal  advantage  to  our  citizens ; 
inasmuch  as  the  fact,  so  common  here,  of  naturalizing  foreign  crimi- 
nals and  refugees  from  the  penalties  of  law,  might  be  made  known 
before  admitting  such  into  the  great  family  of  American  brethren. 


122  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

After  tliis,  he  slioiild  be  propounded  at  least  one  meeting  (if  the  power 
referred  to  be  granted  to  local  representative  authority)  previous  to  his 
being  voted  for  ;  and  then  ])e  required  to  take  his  oath  of  allegiance 
before  the  United  States  court,  pay  his  fee,  and  receive  his  papers  duly 
attested,  c^'c. 

This  simple  and  open  course  of  procedure  Avould,  in  the  first  place, 
23resent  the  name  and  character  of  the  individual  before  the  public  ; 
and  should  he  not  have  been  a  resident  of  the  United  States  during 
the  time  required  by  law,  there  would  be  those  among  our  citizens 
who,  knowing  the  facts,  would  be  able  to  remonstrate  against  the  vio- 
lations of  our  laws^  now  so  commonly  practiced,  and  to  state  the  facts 
so  as  to  save  us  from  such  fearful  evils.  This  will  apply  to  those  who, 
being  felons  or  fugitives  from  justice,  may  attempt  to  impose  upon  us 
by  securing  the  hallo Aved  rights  of  suffrage,  as  the  truth  would  be 
known  by  the  same  public  means  ;  and,  should  his  qualifications  be 
unexceptionable,  he  can  be  made  a  citizen  in  this  way  with  as  little 
difficulty  as  any  other.  We  would  know  who  are  to  be  made  citizens, 
and  to  be  received  into  the  American  family,  before  the  act  is  consum- 
mated— before  criminals,  paupers,  &c.,  are  forced  upon  us  by  thou- 
sands, simply  to  serve  the  base  and  heartless  purposes  of  a  few  crazy 
and  irresijonsible  politicians,  and  to  fill  the  j^ockets  of  a  less  number 
of  greedy  office-holders  by  the  accumulated  pittances  of  the  ignorant 
and  vicious.  This  appears  as  simple  and  as  honest  a  waj^  to  effect  a 
salutary  reform  of  existing  evils  as  any  Avhicli  ^jresents  itself  at  the 
moment.  It  is  of  very  great  importance  that  the  character  of  for- 
eigners should  be  known,  for  numerous  reasons;  but,  as  the  laws  now 
are,  they  may  be  admitted  to  all  the  rights  af  citizenship,  reeking 
with  crime ;  while  a  native  countryman  cannot  become  a  freeman  under 
such  circumstances,  on  his  own  soil.  The  publication  of  names,  as 
above  proposed,  would  very  essentially  aid  the  ends  of  justice,  to  say 
nothing  which  it  would  oppose  in  committing  to  the  hands  of  foreign 
criminals  the  institutions  and  liberties  of  our  country. 

It  also  appears  to  me,  as  it  has  to  thousands  of  our  fellow-citizens, 
that  a  person,  before  becoming  a  citizen,  should  be  required,  at  least, 
to  sjjeak  our  language  so  as  to  be  understood ;  instead  of  which,  great 
numbers  are  now  allowed  to  wield  the  rights  of  American  suffrage 
without  the  ability  to  communicate  the  most  simple  idea  in  the  English 
lansfuasre.  The  case  herewith  sent  vou  is  one  of  the  thousands  of 
similar  ones,  showing  the  importance  of  this  requisition.  In  addition 
to  this,  they  should  be  required  to  read  and  write.  The  evils  arising 
from  ignorance  in  respect  to  this,  are  very  great,  and  of  the  most 
dangerous  tendency.  Thousands  of  the  wretchedly  ignorant  foreigners 
■who  flock  to  our  polls  know  not  for  whom  they  vote,  and  care  as  little. 
They  are  most  egregiously  imposed  upon  by  designing  men,  and  made 
the  dupes  and  tools  of  the  selfish  and  ambitious.  They  know  nothing 
of  the  candidates  for  office,  except  that  which  they  may  choose  to  be 
told  by  interested  individuals,  and  which  may  be  either  true  or  false, 
agreeable  to  their  own  wishes,  if  they  have  any,  or  otherwise.  The 
great  difference  between  such  and  our  own  native  citizen  is  at  once 
perceived.  It  is,  indeed,  deplorable,  and,  in  fact,  as  much  opposed  to 
the  interests  of  the  ignorant  foreigner  as  to  the  safety  and  happiness 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    TAUPERS.  123 

of  our  common  country.  We  are  the  freest  and  most  liapp,v  people, 
because,  in  the  aggregate,  tlie  most  enlightened  ;  hut  we  shall  con- 
tinue thus  free  and  happy  only  so  long  as  we  are  virtuous  and  intelli- 
gent. Foreigners  cannot  safely  exercise  the  elective  franchise  Avhen 
they  do  not  understand  or  appreciate  its  nature  and  advantages  ;  nor 
can  they  possess  a  knowledge  of  our  Constitution,  and  the  character 
of  our  civil,  religious,  and  political  government  ;  and  how,  we  would 
ask,  are  they  to  become  acquainted  with  these  things,  except  they 
read,  write,  or  s])eak  our  language  ?  The  simj)le  existence  within  the 
United  States,  during  live  years,  will  not  give  them  the  requisite 
knowledge  of  our  laws  and  government,  or  the  character  of  our  coun- 
try and  its  institutions,  to  hold  the  j^ower  or  wield  its  destiny.  In 
fact,  the  great,  the  safe,  and  the  necessary  remedy  for  these  various 
evils,  is  ultimately  to  be  found  in  the  extension  of  the  time  during 
which  foreigners  shall  be  required  to  have  remained  in  this  country , 
to  fourteen  or  twenty-one  years. 

The  question,  "  Is  the  emigration  of  any  particular  class  of  for- 
eigners into  the  United  States,  at  this  time,  prejudicial  to  the  interests 
of  the  citizens,  or  dangerous  to  the  institutions  of  the  country  ;  if  so, 
what  class,  and  what  remedy  can  you  suggest  for  avoiding  the  evils 
apprehended?"  requires  no  very  elaborate  discussion  after  what  has 
been  said  respecting  the  general  character  of  those  emigrating  to  this 
country.  If  "class"  is  to  be  understood  in  reference  to  moral  charac- 
ter, the  convicted  felons  from  all  parts  of  Europe,  and  those  who  ilee 
\vither  to  escape  the  rewards  of  justice,  or  to  prosecute  more  success- 
fully the  various  modes  to  which  they  have  been  accustomed,  of  crime, 
are  doubtless  the  most  immediately  dangerous  to  our  institutions. 
But  I  am  convinced  that^  under  the  general  denomination  of  "the 
ignorant,"  this  class  includes  a  very  large  proportion  of  the  vicious 
and  criminal,  and,  consequently,  is  by  far  the  larger  of  the  two.  The 
cultivation  of  the  intellectual  faculties  tends,  as  we  well  know,  to  the 
improvement  of  the  moral.  Besides_,  the  powers  of  the  perceptive 
and  reflective  faculties,  if  naturally  active  and  predominant,  or  if 
improved  by  education,  deter  from  the  commission  of  crime  and  the 
violation  of  law  by  pointing  out  and  by  appreciating  the  consequences. 
The  ignorant,  whose  propensities  generally  predominate  over  both  the 
moral  and  intellectual  faculties,  are  those  from  whom  experience  has 
taught  us  that  our  country  has  most  to  apprehend.  Urged  on  by  un- 
governed  passions,  with  fancied  or  superstitious  objects  in  view,  such 
require  restraints  and  penalties  which  our  laws  do  not  impose.  The 
character  of  our  free  institutions  was  not  adapted  for  such  citizens  ; 
nor  did  the  framers  of  those  institutions  contemplate  the  nature  and 
mental  character  of  the  bulk  of  those  who  have  since  flooded  our  coun- 
try. Of  this  class  the  Irish  constitute  altogether  the  largest  part. 
When,  as  before  intimated,  such  are  permitted  to  exercise  the  rights 
of  suffrage,  and  thus  to  control  our  rights,  our  liberties,  and  our  gov- 
ernment, no  one  of  which  they  understand,  the  result  must  inevitably 
prove  prejudicial  to  our  interests  and  eminently  dangerous  to  our  laws. 
Ignorance  is,  therefore,  the  greatest  curse  of  our  population,  and  the 
source  from  which  we  are  to  expect  the  most  alarming  evils.  It  hap- 
pens that  the  most  ignorant  part  of  our  population  (and  perhaps  this 


124  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

is  applicable  to  all  nations)  are  most  devoted  to  dogmas  and  religious 
opinions  -wliicli  reason,  experience,  and  all  past  history  have  shown  to 
be  most  incompatible  with  free  republican  institutions^  with  the  im- 
provement of  society,  and  the  happiness  of  nations  ;  hence  it  will  be 
inferred  what  class  are  the  most  dangerous,  &c.  It  will  not  be  denied 
that  much  the  largest  j^art  of  foreign  emigrants  from  all  parts  of  Eu- 
rope are  of  this  class,  Avith  the  exception,  only,  that  the  creeds  and 
dogmas  of  all  do  not  present  exactly  the  same  shades  of  character. 

That  the  criminal  and  the  dishonest  in  trade  flee  to  tliis  country  in 
immense  numbers,  is  but  the  revelation  of  every  day.  Our  courts  of 
justice  and  bitter  experience  continually  confirm  this.  The  latter,  it  has 
been  remarked,  ultimately  succeed  in  their  business  operations  much 
better  than  our  native  citizens,  and  for  reasons  which,  to  our  citizens, 
are  but  too  obvious.  Indeed,  if  we  take  the  great  mass  of  our  ordi- 
nary trades,  of  which  foreigners  constitute,  perhaps,  the  larger  part, 
we  find  that  they  are  remarkably  successful  in  competing  with  our 
native  citizens. 

Of  the  innumerable  cases  before  our  police  and  criminal  courts,  it 
is  estimated  that  three-fourths  are  those  of  foreigners.  From  this  cir- 
cumstance, if  from  no  other,  we  are  enabled  to  judge  of  their  general 
character.  The  number  of  convicts  at  the  State  prison  at  Sing  Sing, 
according  to  a  late  report,  was  800,  603  of  whom  were  foreigners. 
Hence  we  have  over  three-fourths  of  the  whole  number  who  are  for- 
eigners, or  one  in  every  74  of  our  foreign  population,  and  one  for 
1,294  of  our  own  native  countrymen.  Of  these,  and  the  numbers  at 
our  city  prisons,  exclusive  of  blacks,  the  disproportion  is  still  greater. 
The  expense  of  our  police  alone  is  $40,000  ;  that  is,  the  amount  de- 
frayed by  our  city  government ;  but  this,  it  will  be  understood,  is  by 
no  means  the  actual  expense  of  that  department.  Whatever  it  may 
be,  however,  three-fourths  of  the  Avhole  is  for  the  arrest  and  conviction 
of  foreigners.  Thus  it  is  with  our  higher  criminal  courts,  as  is  seen  by 
the  results  at  Sing  Sing  ;  so  that  the  enormous  taxes  necessarily  imposed 
upon  our  citizens  for  the  support  of  these  various  departments,  is  for 
the  benefit  of  foreigners.  In  fact,  our  institutions  seem  to  be  made 
alone  for  the  use  of  foreign  paupers  and  criminals,  while  we  who  have 
established  and  who  support  them  have  comparatively  little  use  of- 
them.  We  have  become  a  nation  of  philanthropists,  truly.  We  in 
vite  all  the  refuse  of  the  old  world  among. us,  ijiat  we  may  support 
them,  or  sufter  in  everv  wav  bv  their  crimes  and  idleness.  Bv  adding 
together  the  proi^ortions  which  we  have  heretofore  made  out,  the  facts 
conclusively  show  to  what  a  ruinous  extent  our  misguided  pliilan- 
throphy  and  ridiculous  sentiments  of  liberality  have  been  carried. 
Can  it  be  possible  that,  with  these  things  in  view,  Ave  can  longer  sub- 
mit to  such  outrage  and  imposition?  What  an  immense  expense  we 
are  at  in  our  numerous  charitable,  criminal,  and  all  other  institutions, 
for  the  special  accommodation  of  thooe  Avho  never  contributed  a  cent 
for  the  public  good,  but  who  demoralize  society,  prey  upon  our  sub- 
stance, and  endanger  our  peace  and  happiness  ;  and  all  for  a  strange 
people  coming  3,000  miles  aAvay  to  their  enjoyment! 

The  practice  of  sending  criminals  to  our  shores,  to  rid  the  old  world 
of  its  Avorst  population,  cannot  be  unkncAvn  to  you;  and  yet,  by  our 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  125 

present  laws,  all  such  may  become  imited  with  us  in  the  administra- 
tion of  our  government.  A  Meunier,  a  Boireau,  or  any  of  the  villains 
deported  from  Bremen,  may  soon  dictate  to  us  our  laws,  without  wait- 
ing even  for  the  expiration  of  the  brief  period  which  our  laws  profess 
to  require,  if  they  but  follow  the  example  so  much  practiced  in  this 
city. 

I  know  of  no  remedy  for  these  crying  evils  save  those  before  sug- 
gested, and  the  requirement  of  such  evidences  of  character  from  au- 
thorized powers  abroad  as  shall  effectually  secure  us  from  them.  In 
my  opinion^  each  and  every  individual  coming  to  this  country  should 
be  required  to  present,  on  arrival,  a  passport  of  character,  of  inten- 
tions, &e.,  signed  by  a  competent  and  fully  authorized  individual; 
and  that  the  masters  of  vessels  bringing  others  than  those  having  such 
certificates  thus  signed,  should  be  subject  to  heavy  penalties.  We 
may  as  well  meet  this  subject  at  once,  for  meet  it  we  must ;  and  this, 
whatever  the  emigrants  themselves,  the  masters  of  vessels^,  or  any 
other  interested  persons  may  think  of  it,  is  one  of  the  ways  i)j  w^iich 
the  difficulties  are  to  be  met.  If  the  emigrant  considers  this  a  griev- 
ance, we  have  to  say,  in  plain  English — stay  at  home.  Justice  to  our- 
selves and  justice  to  our  common  country  require  us  to  act,  and  to  act 
efficiently,  on  this  subject ;  and  whether  foreigners  have  certificates  or 
not,  better,  far  better,  that  they  stay  at  home.  The  advantages  of  a 
law  of  this  kind,  the  details  of  which  appear  to  me  easily  formed, 
would  be  immense.  Were  fifty  respectable  individuals,  of  salaries  at 
$2,000  per  annum,  appointed  and  charged  with  the  requisite  authority 
by  our  government,  to  remain  in  foreign  places  for  the  performance  of 
the  duties  indicated.  New  York  city  alone  might  pay  the  whole  ex- 
pense, and  save  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  saving  which  would  be  realized  by  society,  the  safety  of  lives,  and 
of  property.  Our  native  citizens  throughout  our  country  would  re- 
joice at  the  enactment  of  such  a  law.  But  the  expense  alluded  to  is 
not  necessary,  except,  perhaps,  in  one  or  two  instances  in  interior 
towns.  Our  consuls  at  the  various  Atlantic  ports  might  be  easily 
charged  with  these  duties,  with  a  comparatively  trifling  additional 
expense. 

I  had  intended  to  continue  my  remarks  upon  some  subjects  con- 
nected with  your  inquiries,  and  to  have  presented  additional  facts,  but 
my  leasure  will  not  now  allow  me  to  do  so.  Indeed,  I  have  referred 
to  your  interrogatories  without  much  order  in  the  arraiigement,  and 
thrown  together,  with  very  little  precision  or  accuracy  as  to  the  man- 
ner, the  few  facts  and  considerations  Avhich  have  suggested  themselves 
in  the  course  of  my  reflections  in  this  hasty  reply.  Had  I  been  favored 
with  more  leisure,  perhaps  more  justice  would  have  been  done  to  your 
inquiries.  I  cannot  avoid  expressing  to  you,  on  closing  these  obser- 
vations, that  your  laudable  efforts  to  carry  out  the  wishes  of  our 
patriotic  citizens  are  appreciated  and  will  receive  just  commendations. 
As  I  love  my  country  and  its  institutions,  I  do  most  ardently  hope  for 
a  successful  result  to  your  zealous  exertions.  At  a  future  time,  I  shall 
be  enabled,  I  trust,  to  do  more  justice  to  this  and  other  subjects  rela- 
tive to  your  inquiries.  In  the  mean  time,  should  not  Congress  act 
definitely,  during  the  present  session,  additional  materials  may  be  at 


126  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

hand,  wliicli  will  favor  the  objects  in  view.  Begging,  therefore,  that 
you  will  consider  the  apology  offered  for  the  haste  which  I  have  used 
in  replying  to  you  as  satisfactory,  and  hoping  you  will  do  me  the 
honor  to  inform  me  of  the  result  of  your  efforts,  and  particularly  on 
your  return  from  AVashington, 

I  am,  sir,  with  great  consideration,  your  obedient  servant, 

L.  D.  CHAPIN. 
Hon.  D.  Russell. 


No.  241. 

On  the  3d  of  March,  1845,  Mr.  Berrien  made  a  report  in  the  Senate 
from  the  Committee  on  the  Judiciary,  to  which  had  been  referred 
sundry  resolutions  and  memorials  in  relation  to  immigration  of  pau- 
pers and  convicts,  from  the  testimony  accompanying  which  the  fol- 
lowing abstract  is  made. — See  Senate  document  173,  2Sth  Congress, 
second  session. 

Dr.  Samuel  B.  Martin  returned,  in  writing,  the  following  state- 
ment, in  reply  to  interrogatories  propounded  to  him  and  was  sworn 
thereto : 

Baltimore,  February  3,  1845. 

(tENTLEMEx  ;  I  commence  by  stating  that  I  had  the  honor  of  serving 

this  my  native  city,  in  the  capacity  of  health  officer,  for  fifteen  years. 

******** 

In  the  year  182G,  during  the  six  months  of  my  duty,  (1  w^as  only 
required  to  visit  and  examine  the  vessels,  and  persons  on  boards  from 
the  1st  of  May  to  the  1st  of  November,  of  each  year,)  I  examined  into 
the  condition  of  1^604  foreign  passengers.  In  my  annual  report  of 
that  vear,  I  called  the  attention  of  the  mavor  and  councils  of  the  citv 
to  the  grv3at  influx  of  passengers,  among  whom  I  discovered  a  number 
of  paupers,  (tc. 

In  the  year  1830  (six  months  thereof)  there  arrived  at  this  port 
4,084  foreign  passengers.  I  again  called  the  attention  of  the  mayor 
and  councils  to  the  subject ;  for  which  see  my  report,  in  the  Appendix 
to  the  citv  ordinances,  dated  26th  December,  1830. 

In  the  year  1831  (six  months  thereof)  there  arrived  at  the  port  of 
Baltimore  4,381  foreign  passengers.  I  again  renewed  my  call  on  the 
attention  of  the  mayor  and  councils  to  the  growing  evil,  and  to  the 
important  fact  of  the  introduction  among  us  of  the  halt,  the  lame,  and 
the  blind. 

In  the  year  1832,  (during  six  months,)  there  arrived  11,546  foreign 
passengers.  I  found  it  necessary  to  reiterate  my  call  on  the  mayor 
and  councils  for  their  attention  to  the  condition  of  those  immigrants, 
much  the  same  as  in  my  former  complaints.  Tliis  report  alludes  to 
the  introduction  of  both  paupers  and  criminals.  3Iy  information  was 
procured  from  masters  of  passenger  vessels. 

In  the  year  1833,  (six  months  thereof,)  we  had  an  accession  of  8,339 
immigrants.     Their  condition  the  same  as  in  former  reports. 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  127 

In  six  months  of  the  year  1834,  there  arrived  at  the  port  of  Balti- 
more 7,463  foreign  passengers.  I  here  again  complained  of  the  tide 
of  immigration  still  setting  in  upon  us. — (See  Appendix  to  city  ordi- 
nances, page  31,  of  the  year  1835.) 

During  six  months  of  the  year  1835,  the  number  of  immigrants 
amounted  to  3,843.  Once  more  I  renewed  my  call  on  the  mayor  and 
councils  in  my  annual  report. — (See  Appendix,  &c.,  for  183G,  of  city 
ordinances.) 

During  six  months  of  183G,  we  had  an  accession  of  5^268  foreign 
passengers.  I  here  ceased  to  make  my  complaints,  as  there  ajipeared 
to  be  no  notice  taken  of  them. 

During  six  months  of  the  year  1837,  there  arrived  5,941  foreign 
passengers.  No  further  call  was  made  by  me  on  the  attention  of  the 
mayor  and  councils,  yet  their  condition  was  no  better  than  in  former 
years. 

During  six  months  of  the  year  1838,  the  number  of  immigrants  was 
4,908.  I  continued  silent  as  to  their  condition,  not  feeling  disposed 
to  be  importunate.  -This  was  my  last  (fifteenth)  year  of  the  duties  of 
health  officer,  the  new  ma3'or  deeming  it  proper  to  change  his  officer. 

In  the  foregoing  statement,  I  commenced  with  the  year  1829,  be- 
cause during  the  years  preceding  the  number  of  immigrants  was  but 
small  thait  came  under  my  inspection,  and  less  exceptionable  as  to 
character;  indeed,  they  appeared  quite  like  another  people — mostly 
good  mechanics,  farmers,  &c. — and,  in  the  general,  possessed  of  means 
to  acquire  a  proper  subsistence  amongst  us.  The  impression  made  on 
my  mind  by  the  character  and  condition  of  the  immigrants,  since 
1828,  Was,  that  they  had  become  an  insupportable  burden  in  their 
own  country,  and  were  induced,  by  false  pretences,  and  sometimes  by 
force,  to  leave  their  country  for  this — the  actors  or  agents  in  the  mat- 
ter under  consideration  being  imj)elled  thereto  by  the  expectation  of 
emolument  to  themselves  by  rendering  service  to  the  districts  of 
country  from  whence  these  deluded  people  came,  and  holding  out  to 
them  the  prospect  of  a  "land  flowing  ivith  milk  and  honey."  I  feel, 
also,  very  confident  they  (the  actors  behind  the  curtain)  must  therein 
have  i-ome  political  vieics. 

I  here  subjoin  extracts  from  my  annual  communications  to  the  au- 
thorities of  the  city  of  Baltimore,  alluded  to  in  this  my  answer  to  your 
first  interrogatory,  and  in  part  to  the  fifth,  and  also  to  the  sixth. 

1828.  ''Many  (passengers)  arrived  here  very  destitute  indeed, 
which  luill  have  a  tendency  to  increase  our  poor-rates  rapidly." 

1829.  ''I  beg  to  be  excused  for  again  calling  your  attention  to  the 
great  influx  of  passengers,  (foreign  immigrants  alluded  to,)  without 
the  least  regard  to  their  ability  (in  many  cases)  for  a  maintenance — 
some  lame,  blind,  others  in  a  state  of  idiotcy.  I  Avas  informed  by  a 
respectable  master  of  a  vessel,  that,  two  years  since,  a  number  of  pas- 
sengers were  provided  for,  their  passage  money  paid,  &c.,  by  the 
parish  to  which  they  belonged,  and  sent  to  this  country  in  the  vessel 
which  he  commanded." 

1830.  "A  sense  of  duty  impels  me  again  to  solicit  your  attention, 
not  only  to  the  increasing  influx,  but  also  to  the  condition,  of  strangers 
arriving  at  this  port,  both  in  foreign  and  American  vessels.     The 


128  FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

increase  every  year  is  remarkable ;  the  condition  of  many  deplorable 
indeed,  both  as  to  there  pecuniary  resources,  as  well  as  to  their  infir- 
mities, mental  and  physical.  Paupers  continue  to  be  sent  (or  brought) 
to  us  in  considerable  numbers ;  to  meet  which,  it  appears  to  me  highly 
necessary  some  measures  should  be  adopted. ' ' 

1831.  ''  Foreigners,  4,381  ;  in  which  number,  as  usual,  are  com- 
prised many  paupers  ;  a  number  hcdt,  lame,  and  hlind.  This  circum- 
stance I  feel  it  my  duty  to  again  represent  as  a  growing  evil,  arising 
out  of  the  facility  with  whicTi  such  description  of  population  may  be 
introduced  here,  which,  in  other  sea-ports,  is  denied  to  passenger  ships. 
Vessels,  both  foreign  as  well  as  American,  find  it  to  their  advantage 
to  take  from  150  to  200  passengers  for  Baltimore — being  in  ballast, 
land  them  without  difficulty ;  and  should  no  freight  offer  immediately, 
are  convenient  to  the  Potomac  or  James  river,  &c.,  much  to  their 
advantage,  but  greatly  to  the  disadvantage  of  our  city.  I  would  not 
so  frequently  call  your  attention  to  this  subject  did  it  not  appear  like 
an  imposition  on  the  lenity  of  our  laws,  and  a  violation  of  hospitality. 
During  the  past  season  there  has  been  another  instance  of  the  whole 
number  of  passengers  having  been  paupers,  and  sent  ^o  this  country 
as  such,  at  the  expense  of  a  European  parish.  The  fact  was  commu- 
nicated to  me  by  a  respectable  merchant,  whose  means  of  information 
I  presume  to  be  undisputed,"  &c. 

1832.  Number  of  passengers  for  six  months  of  this  year,  11,946  ; 
of  which  number  400  were  citizens  of  the  United  States. 

"  The  condition  of  the  passengers  during  the  past  season  has  been 
much  the  same  as  stated  in  my  former  reports,  and  I  hope  it  will  not 
be  considered  importunate  if  I  once  more  beg  the  attention  of  our 
authorities  to  this  growing  evil,  whereby  a  depraved  population  is  with 
so  much  facility  poured  in  upon  us;  the  more  able  part  pass  on  to  the 
interior^  but  the  jxaqier  part  is  left  on  our  hands.  I  think,  also,  that 
provision  should  be  made  by  law.  rerjuiring  every  master  or  com- 
mander of  a  vessel  to  report^  if  he  knuws  of  or  should  discover  such 
(convicts  alluded  to)  during  his  passage  to  be  on  board,  all  and  every 
passenger  by  his  vessel  who  may  have  been  convicted  of  any  misde- 
meanor or  crime  prior  to  his  receiving  such  passenger  on  board,  and 
that  such  convict  be  retained  in  safe  keeping  at  the  expense  of  the 
vessel  in  which  he  or  she  arrives,  until  the  departure  of  said  vessel  ; 
and  the  captain  placed  under  bond  to  reland  said  convict  at  cuch  place 
or  port  where  he  or  she  was  taken  on  board,  or  cause  him  or  her  (con- 
vict) to  be  relanded." 

1833.  "The  condition  of  the  immigrants,  (foreign,)  as  far  as  they 
came  under  my  observation,  was  much  of  the  same  character  as  reported 
in  former  years.  They  will  no  doubt  drop  a  full  share  (indeed  I  can 
bear  testimony  to  the  tact)  of  paupers  at  our  doors." 

Again  :  "  Thus  the  immigrant  finds  it  to  be  his  advantage  to  select 
Baltimore  as  his  (or  her)  place  of  landing,  being  also  50  to  100  miles 
Higher  to  his  place  of  destination.  Thus,  in  addition  to  diminishing 
his  cash  expenditures,  and  as  the  amount  of  immigration,  so  is  the 
amount  of  pauperism  increased  on  our  hands,"  &c. 

1834.  "You   can    form   no  idea  how  many  paupers   are  dropped 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  129 

amongst  us,  from  such   a  host  of  passengers,  during  six  months  of 
each  year." 

1835.  The  number  of  immigrants  in  six  months  of  this  year,  7,463. 
"For  immigrants  continue  for  the  most  part,  as  heretofore  reported, 
of  the  lowest  order  (class)  of  the  population  of  Eurojie." 

1830.  The  number  arrived  six  months  of  this  year,  3,843.  No 
remarks  were  made  in  my  annual  communication  of  this  year  as  to 
the  condition  of  the  immigrants,  amounting  to  5,2G8. 

183T.  From  folio  489  of  revised  ordinances  of  the  city  of  Ealtimore 
for  1838,  I  extract  as  follows: 

''  But  I  beg  leave  again  to  assure  you  that  there  Avere  many  charac- 
ters amongst  these  imivAgYHTds  badly  calculated  to  benefit  our  country^ 
either  by  their  morals  or  their  services.  It  is  true,  however,  that 
some  come  prepared  to  purchase  lands  in  the  west ;  but  I  think  I  am 
within  bonds  when  I  state  that  I  believe  twenty-five  out  of  the  hundred 
are  only  of  that  class  of  immigrants,  leaving  a  balance  against  us  of 
75  per  cent.,  including  the  halt,  lame,  blind,  mendicants,  and  persons 
"unacquainted  with  any  business  except  laboring."  &c. 
Henry  Lamparter,  jr.,  deposed  as  follows: 

My  age  is  21  and  upwards,  my  residence  in  Philadelphia^,  my  occu- 
pation a  dyer.  I  was  born  in  Wurtemberg,  and  came  to  this  country 
when  I  was  five  years  old.  My  father,  with  wdiom  I  reside,  keeps  a 
public  house  in  Philadelphia,  and  I  have  opportunities  of  i)ecoming 
acqyainted  with  many  immigrants  who  come  to  this  country.  I  know 
the  instance  of  tAvo  persons — one  named  Christopher  Brown,  and  one 
named  Henry  Knapp ;  they  were  represented  by  their  fellow-passen- 
gers (and  I  believe  them)  to  have  been  foreign  convicts^  shipped  here 
by  order  of  their  government.  Their  passage  was  said  to  have  been 
paid  by  their  government,  and  their  passports  furnished.  Christopher 
Brown  arrived  here  about  six  or  seven  months  ago,  from  Wurtemberg. 
Henry  Knapp  came  here  several  years  ago — four  or  five  years  ;  he  Avas 
from  BaA^aria.  I  recently  acted  as  interpreter  for  a  man  named  Papen- 
berg,  now  under  arrest  for  murder  in  this  county.  I  learned  from  a 
Avoman  avIio  accompanied  him,  that  they  had  both  been  sent  to  this 
country  from  a  house  of  correction  in  Brunswick. 

William  Wardenburg,  of  Baltimore,  said  upon  oath: 
He  knoAvs  that  criminals  and  paupers  have  been  sent  to  this  country 
from  Europe;  knows  that  paupeis  from  the  alms-houses  of  Germany 
AA^ere  sent  here  by  government  in  the  ships  Ernest  and  ClustaA'e,  Cap- 
tain Faust,  and  the  Albert,  Captain  Klockgeter.  AVithin  the  last 
two  or  three  years  the  number  of  criminals  and  paupers  sent  to  the 
city  of  Baltimore  has  greatly  increased  ;  and  the  Avitness  thinks  that 
the  charge  on  passengers  arriving  in  this  country  sliould  be  raised. 
Criminals,  both  men  and  Avomen,  liave  been  sent  here;  has  knoAvn 
them  to  be  guilty  of  crimes  since  their  arrival  here ;  knows  an  instance 
in  Avhich  one  of  these  persons  Avas  sent  to  the  jail  of  this  city  for 
stealing,  and  Avho  stole  the  poker  from  the  room  in  Avliich  he  Avas 
confined  just  before  he  Avas  released.  This  criminal  had  been  only 
two  or  three  Aveeks  in  the  country  when  he  Avas  arrested. 

Abraham  Cuyk  made  the  folloAving  statement,  on  oath,  to  verbal 
interrogatories  propounded  to  him : 
H.  Rep.  359 9 


180  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

I  am  a  native  of  the  Netherlands.  Have  resided  in  the  United 
States  28  years,  and  in  the  cit)^  of  Baltimore  about  15  years.  For  four 
years  I  acted  as  an  agent  for  forwarding  immigrants  to  the  western 
country,  and  for  the  last  year  I  have  been  transacting  the  same  busi- 
ness on  my  own  account. 

He  then  handed  in  the  following  statement  in  writing,  to  which  he 
was  sworn : 

To  the  Commissioners  on  the  Naturalization  Laws  for  the  City  of  Balti- 

mo7'e : 

Baltimore,  January,  30,  1845. 

Gentlemen  :  According  to  your  demand,  I  have  to  state  to  your 
honorable  body  the  following  tacts:  In  November,  1843,  the  Bremen 
barque  Eepublic,  Captain  Tegeler,  owners^  Messrs.  Albers  &  Koneken, 
consigned  to  Messrs.  Albers  &  Co.,  here,  arrived  here  with  28  convicts 
from  the  kingdom  of  Wurtemberg.  They  were  brought  with  dragoons 
to  Bremerhaven,  and  put  on  board  of  said  vessel,  and  one  of  the 
dragoons  remained  on  board  until  they  went  to  sea,  and  he  returned 
with  the  pilot.  And,  besides,  there  were  two  murderers  on  said  vessel 
as  passengers. 

The  publication  that  lately  appeared  in  the  "  Sun,"  of  the  German 
Society  of  Maryland,  is  merely  a  humbug.  They  never  appointed  a 
committee  to  make  inquiry,  on  account  they  know  themselves  it  is 
true. 

I  transport  a  great  many  to  the  west;  so  last  year  I  sent  1,80(> 
away;  therefore,  I  am  very  well  acquainted  with  the  im2)ortation. 
The  captain,  the  moment  after  fastening  the  vessel,  tries  to  get  rid  of 
them,  on  account  he  knows  what  cargo  he  has  in  the  vessel.  But  it 
would  be  against  the  German  Society  of  Maryland,  if  they  should  not 
come,  because  the  most  of  them,  or  a  good  many,  are  owners  or  con- 
signees of  vessels. 

And  more,  also,  last  Thursday,  the  23d  instant,  the  Bremin  ship 
Albert,  Captain  Klockgeter — owners,  Brothers  Kuhlenkamp,  in 
Bremen,  consigned  to  Messrs.  A.  Schumacher  &  Co.,  arrived  here  with 
106  passengers,  whereof  19  went  to  the  west,  and  the  others  remained 
here,  on  account  they  had  no  money,  and  the  German  Society  of 
Maryland  has  already  given  to  the  brothers  Poolman,  passengers  of 
said  vessel,  $4.  If  you  do  not  think  they  are  paupers,  I  do  not  know 
wh(^are.  In  fact,  here  arrives  no  vessel  with  passengers  where  there 
are  no  paupers  on  ;  and  the  German  Society  of  Maryland  are  aware 
of  that,  but  self-interest  compels  them  to  keep  silence.  They  have 
sent,  last  year,  circulars  out  to  Germany,  to  recommend  them  to  come 
with  money  ;  l)ut  they  do  not  care  if  they  are  out  of  prison,  or  Avhero 
they  come  from.  It  is  well  known  any  of  the  German  kingdoms  are 
very  willing  to  empty  prisons,  and  give  them  five  or  ten  dollars  along, 
to  get  rid  of  them;  and  certainly,  the  Bremen  merchants  do  not  care 
how  they  load  their  vessels,  if  they  only  get  paid  for  it,  if  they  are 
murderers,  burglars,  or  paupers. 

I  have  said  enough  on  tliis  subject,  and  believe  your  honorable  body 
will  find  them  satisfactory  enough. 

On  my  part,  I  am,  very  respectfully,  yours, 

ABRAHAM  CUYK. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  131 

Moses  Catzenstein  handed  in  a  statement,  in  writing,  (in  tlie  Ger- 
man language,)  of  whicli  the  following  is  a  translation,  to  which  he 
was  sworn  on  the  five  hooks  of  Moses,  (the  witness  heing  a  Jew.) 

By  re(iuest  of  tlie  commissioners,  appointed  by  the  Committee  on 
tlie  Judiciary  of  tlie  United  States  Senate,  in  regard  to  the  importation 
of  paujiers  and  criminals  from  foreign  countries,  1  would  respectfully 
state,  that  I  embarked  in  Bremen,  on  board  the  Bremen  ship  Eepub- 
lic.  Captain  Tegeler,  together  with  about  100  other  passengers,,  in  the 
course  of  the  summer  of  1843.  and  arrived  in  Baltimore  about  the 
middle  of  December  of  the  same  year ;  that  among  the  above  passen- 
gers were  28  criminals,  sent  out  of  the  country  by  their  respective 
governments,  and  accompanied  by  a  police  officer  until  the  ship  was 
fairly  at  sea,  when  each  of  these  28  persons  were  handed  a  certain 
sum  of  money  by  the  police  officer,  and  he  then  left  the  ship  with  the 
pilot,  and  the  ship  proceeded  on  her  voyage — her  port  of  destination 
being  Baltimore,  in  Maryland,  United  States  of  America.  Xearly  all 
the  persons  alluded  to  are  now  in  Baltimore. 

He  knows  a  criminal,  exclusive  of  those  mentioned  in  his  statement, 
who  was  transported  to  this  countiy,  from  the  neighborhood  from 
which  he  (Catzenstein)  came,  for  drunkenness  and  robbery  ;  and  that 
said  criminal  is  now  in  tliis  city.  The  witness  resided  in  the  county 
of  Lowenstein,  in  the  kingdom  of  Hanover.  The  name  of  the  criminal 
alluded  to  is  August  Munzell. 

Loring  D.  Chapman,  of  the  city  of  New  York,  an  editor,  aged  forty- 
six  3'ears,  answered  thus : 

The  person  who  constructed  the  machine  for  destroying  the  life  of 
Louis  Philippe  is  now  a  resident  of  this  city.  I  know  of  several  other 
instances,  by  information  ;  some  of  these  came  of  1837.  I  have  exam- 
ined the  subject,  and  am  possessed  of  information  of  frequent  instances 
of  this  kind.  The  communications  from  the  American  consuls  at 
Bremen  and  Leipsic,  to  Mr.  Woodbury,  contain  the  facts  in  reference 
to  the  deportation  of  foreign  convicts. 

Samuel  J.  Bobbins  testified  as  follows  : 

"I  believe  that  foreign  convicts  have  been  introduced  into  this 
country.  This  belief  is  founded  upon  inquiries  made  and  papers  read 
by  me  u[)on  this  subject,  in  the  almshouse  of  this  city  and  district ; 
in  which  establishment  I  have  had  means  of  acquiring  information, 
beins  and  havino;  been  for  the  last  four  rears  '  Secretarv  of  the  Guar- 
dians  of  the  Poor  for  the  city  of  Philadeli)hia,  district  of  Southwark, 
and  the  townshijts  of  the  Northern  Liberties  and  Penn;'  but  I  cannot 
now  specify  the  particular  information  or  the  particular  documents  on 
which  my  belief  is  founded.  I  recollect  that  one  of  the  paupers  in  this 
almshouse  acknowledged  to  me  that  he  had  been  a  convict  abroad, 
and  Ave  sent  him  ])ack  to  Bremen,  at  his  own  request."' 

To  the  sixth  interrogatory  annexed  to  said  commission,  he  answer- 
ing, says : 

In  answer  to  this  interrogatory,  the  deponent  says  :  I  have  no  other 
knowledge  than  such  as  may  V)o  contained  in  the  following  narration  : 
The  number  of  immigrants  Avhich  arrived  at  the  port  of  Philadelphia 
above  two  years  of  age,  for  the  year  ending  the  1st  of  January,  1845, 
was  4,478:  of  which  number  about  100  have  been  admitted  as  pau- 


132  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

pers.     The  population  of  the  almshouse,  on  the  11th  of  January, 
1845,  consisted  as  follows: 

Whites,  persons  born  in  foreign  countries    -  -  -  -           926 

Whites,  persons  born  in  the  United  States  _  _  _           ^IS 

Blacks,  persons  born  in  forei,f!;n  countries     -  -  _  _             12 

Blacks,  persons  born  in  the  United  States    -  -  -  _           200 


Total  population  ---____       1,851 

George  W.  Smith,  of  Philadelphia,  testified  as  follows  : 

When  I  resided  in  Edinburgh,  Scotland,  in  the  years  1834,  1835, 
1836,  and  1837,  I  visited  the  poor-house  of  the  West  Kirk  parish 
(which  parish  contains  71,000  inhabitants)  in  company  wath  Mr. 
Whigham,  one  of  the  directors.  He  showed  me  a  number  of  boys, 
paupers,  whom  they  intended  to  send  out  to  Canada,  via  New  York, 
in  order  to  benefit  them,  and  to  save  expense  to  the  jiarish.  These 
boys  did  not  exceed  a  dozen  in  number,  to  the  best  of  my  recollection. 
I  was  informed  that  the  practice  was  common. 

When  I  returned  to  the  United  States,  1  saw  frequent  notices  in  the 
New  York  journals  of  young  vagrants  or  paupers  from  the  poor- 
house  being  arrested  in  New  York,  where,  it  appeared,  they  had  re- 
mained, instead  of  proceeding  to  Canada,  as  intended.  Of  these  arrests 
I  know  nothing,  but  from  those  journals  ;  nor  do  I  know  that  those 
boys  were  the  very  individuals  I  had  seen  and  examined  in  Edinburgh; 
but  from  the  description  given  of-  them  in  said  journals,  I  verily 
believe  they  were.  The  practice  is,  no  doubt,  beneficial  to  the  Scotch 
parish,  and  would  be  to  the  boys,  if  a  powder  of  coercion  existed  to 
compel  them  to  proceed  to  Canad?.,^.  (after  their  arrival  in  New  York, 
■where  there  is  no  control  over  them,)  as  the  director  informed  me  that 
places  had  been  procured  for  them  in  that  province. 

In  European  newspapers,  when  I  was  abroad,  I  repeatedly  read  ac- 
counts of  the  conviction  of  criminals,  and  that  their  sentences  were 
commuted,  on  condition  that  they  should  leave  the  country  and  go  to 
the  United  States  of  America.  This  was  a  frequent  subject  of  conver- 
sation among  Americans  abroad,  and,  as  a  matter  of  course,  excited 
an  indignation.  I  read  these  accounts  chieflv  in  extracts  from  the 
newspapers  of  Germany,  introduced  into  the  }»apers  of  France  and 
England. 

George  Henry  Poulsen.  aged  fifty-two  years,  agent,  residing  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  answered  thus: 

I  know  of  many  instances  where  convicts  have  been  pardoned  and 
sent  to  this  country  at  the  expense  of  the  government  by  which  they 
were  ])ardoned.  Ten  or  twelve  such  cases  have  come  to  my  knowledge, 
and  I  know  a  case  where  four  on  board  of  one  vessel  were  sent 
from  a  house  of  correction  in  the  dukedom  of  Brunswick.  These  I 
know^  of  my  own  personal  knowledge,  having  seen  an  endorsement  on 
the  passports,  that  the  persons  were  convicts,  transported  by  a  guard 
from  station  to  station  to  the  frontier,  where  they  are  taken  by  an 
agent  of  the  ship  from  the  police  ofiicer  to  the  vessel  in  which  they 
are  embarked.  The  instances  which  came  to  my  knowledge  occurred 
within  the  last  three  years ;  a  large  number  of  the  Germans,  arriving 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  133 

here  soon  after,  became  chargeable  for  their  support  to  the  city  or  to 
their  bondsmen.  Such  instances  we  have  very  frequently ;  they  call 
on  me  for  aid  immediately.  There  are  also  very  numerous  instances 
of  foreign  pau])ers,  sometimes  from  the  poor-houses,  in  other  instances 
supported  by  the  communes,  being  shipped  to  this  port.  This  im- 
portation of  paupers  has  increased  very  much  during  the  last  year ; 
they  are  sent  here  to  save  the  expense  of  supporting  them  in  Europe 
by  the  public  authorities,  at  tlie  public  expense;  some  of  these  per- 
sons, frequently  owing  to  their  having  been  bonded,  are  not  received 
in  the  almshouses,  and,  not  being  aided  by  their  bondsmen,  very 
often  become  street  beggars. 

Dr.  Charles  Wittig  deposed  as  follows: 

I  am  a  native  of  Germany.  I  reside  now  in  Philadelphia,  and  am 
a  citizen  of  the  United  States.  I  have  no  personal  knowledge  of  the 
importation  of  convicts  into  this  country  from  Europe  by  order  of  any 
European  government;  but  I  have  received  a  letter,  addressed  to  me 
because  I  was  a  member  of  the  German  Immigrant  Society,  written 
by  a  gentleman  who  signs  himself  J.  G.  St.  Lange,  and  who  writes 
from  Alleghany  county,  Indiana  township,  Pennsylvania,  under  date 
of  2d  January,  1845. 

The  letter  was  then  produced,  the  substance  of  which,  accurately 
rendered,  is  as  follows ; 

''I  perceive  in  the  Pittsburg  Courier  of  the  25th  December,  1844, 
copied  from  the  pages  of  the  Philadelphia  Democrat,  which  paper  had 
taken  it  from  the  American  papers  in  the  English  language,  that 
Frederick  List,  esq.,  consul  at  Wurtemberg,  had  written  from  Leipsic, 
that  the  German  governments  not  only  were  designing  to  send  off 
their  paupers,  but  also  their  criminals,  to  the  United  States.     That 
this  has  occurred  for  several  years,  I  can  testify  and  prove.     This  did 
not  astonish  me,  but  I  rejoice  that  we  are  determined  earnestly  to 
oppose  it,  and  I  inform  you  of  my  knowledge  on  the  subject.     On  the 
30th   of  July,    1837,  I  travelled  fiom   my  home,  the   dukedom  of 
Schwartzburg  Sondershausen.     From  another  village,  the  magistracy 
desired  to  place  under  my  care  a  person  who  had  several  times  stolen, 
and  who  was  a  great  burden  to  the  community,  and  they  were  anx- 
ious to  get  rid  of  him.     I  refused  the  service,  but  the  magistracy  then 
took  a  trustworthy  messenger,  who  conducted  him  to  Bremen,  with 
sixty-five   Prussian  dollars,  and  transferred   him  immediately  to  a 
captain  of  a  vessel,  wh-o  was  to  pay  the  balance  of  the  money,  deduct- 
ing charges  to  him,  on  his  arrival  in  America.     This  man  had  already 
sailed  when  I  arrived  at  Bremen.     I  sailed  with  the  ship  Johannes, 
Captain  Sengstake.     The  sailors  of  the  ship  told  me  that  on  their  first 
voyage  in  that  year  no  less  than  fourteen  out  of  the  Saxe  Weimer 
prison  had  been  sent  over  in  their  ship,  and  each  one,  on  his  arrival 
in  Baltimore,  received  from  Captain  Sengstake  ten  dollars." 

Kecently  I  met  a  German  from  Sondershausen,  who  was  teaching 
school  in  Alleghany  town,  and  who  had  been  formerly  secretary  of  a 
court.  I  was  much  surprised  at  meeting  him.  He  gave  me  many 
reasons  why  he  had  left  Germany.  Subsequently,  another  person 
from  Sondershausen  told  me  that  he  had  been  convicted  of  poaching. 
On  this  account  he  was  deposed  from  his  office,  and  sentenced  to  two 


134  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND 

years  imprisonment,  during  which  time  he  begged  to  be  permitted  to 
come  to  America,  and  this  was  very  cheerfully  granted  to  him.  This 
a  letter  to  nie  last  spring  confirms.  He  is  not,  however,  permitted  to 
return  to  Germany.  It  is  my  desire  that  the  committee,  as  soon  as 
possible,  would  discover  means  by  which  this  evil  could  be  prevented. 

Lawrence  Herbert,  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  deposed  as  follows: 

I  am  myself  a  native  of  Bavaria;  was  born  in  the  year  1811,  and 
have  resided  in  tlie  United  States  nearly  twelve  years,  and  have  been 
naturalized  about  eight.  I  am  now,  and  have  been  for  a  year  and  a 
half,  agent,  appointed  by  the  German  Immigrant  Society,  to  procure 
employment  for  destitute  immigrants  from  Germany. 

It  is  my  opinion  and  belief,  founded  ujion  my  observation,  that  for-- 
eign  criminals  have  been  introduced  into  the  United  States,  from  some 
of  the  States  of  Germany,  by  authority  of  governments  or  cities. 
When  I  have,  on  several  occasions,  visited  vessels  just  arrived  at  this 
port,  and  have  inquired,  as  is  my  duty,  as  to  the  character  of  different 
passengers,  I  have  been  told,  on  one  occasion,  by  several  immigrants, 
that  men  have  been  brought  and  shipped  under  the  guard  of  armed 
police — this  was  a  ship  from  Bremen ;  this  was  last  summer  a  year. 
On  another  occasion,  whicli  was  the  last,  tliat  of  the  ship  Philadelphia, 
Captain  Graves,  from  Bremen^  which  arrived  about  six  weeks  ago,  a 
young  man  was  pointed  out  to  me  as  having  come  from  a  house  of 
correction  at  Brunswick;  his  name  was  Charles  Papenberg.  This  is 
the  same  man  who  has,  within  a  few  days,  been  arrested  in  this  city, 
and  is  now  in  custody  on  a  very  heinous  charge  of  murder.  Since  his 
arrest  I  directed  a  man  to  go  to  the  office  of  the  mayor,  by  whom  he 
was  arrested,  and  examine  his  passport,  which  was  found  to  be  in 
complete  order.  But  I  do  not  attach  importance  to  this ;  for  if  the 
government  abroad  would  send  him  here,  it  would^  of  course,  furnish 
him  a  passport.  I  have  heard  of  many  cases  of  convicts  being  here  ; 
they  have  been  pointed  out  to  me. 

Generally,  almost  always,  in  these  cases,  where  I  have  obtained 
employment  for  persons  of  this  character,  they  have  turned  out  badly. 
It  is  the  general  opinion  of  the  i-espectable  Germans  of  this  city  that 
foreign  convicts  are  introduced  into  this  country.  They  are  very 
anxious  to  put  a  stop  to  such  a  practice,  and  have  had  several  meet- 
ings on  the  subject ;  and  I  am  very  glad  to  have  had  an  opportunity 
of  giving  my  testimony  on  the  subject.  It  is  a  matter  in  which  re- 
spectable naturalized  citizens  are  much  interested. 

Samuel  Ellenger,  being  a  Jew,  was  sworn  on  the  five  books  of 
Moses,  and  answered: 

A  person  in  the  employment  of  the  witness  stated  to  witness,  that 
a  family  had  been  sent  from  a  penitentiary  in  German)^,  the  money  to 
pay  the  passage  liaving  been  furnished  by  the  village  in  which  they 
resided ;  and  has  heard  of  many  such  cases,  and  knows  some  himself. 
Knows  one  case  in  Avhich  a  deranged  man  was  sent  to  this  country  by 
his  relations,  who*  were  wealthy.  Money  was  raised  in  Baltimore, 
and  the  deranged  man  sent  back  to  his  connexions. 

Zenon  Cavelier,  of  New  Orleans,  deposed  and  said: 

That  there  is  no  doubt  of  the  introduction  into  the  United  States  of 
a  large  number  of  vagabonds  and  criminals,  coming  from  foreign 


FOREIGN   CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  135 

countries;  that  Meiinier  and  Quenissit  came  to  New  Orleans  after 
their  condemnation  for  the  crime  of  regicide,  and  after  their  punish- 
ment had  been  commuted  to  ]  »erpctual  banishment  by  the  French  king ; 
that  he  has  been  assured  that  the  last  named  criminal  obtained  a  cer- 
tificate of  naturalization,  and  that  he  voted  at  the  elections  in  the 
year  1844. 

Moreau  Forrest,  esq.,  United  States  marshal  foi-  the  district  of 
Maryland,  made  the  following  statement  in  writing,  to  which  he  was 
sworn : 

In  the  year  1833,  I  came  passenger  in  a  vessel  from  the  city  of 
Kingston,  Island  of  Jamacia,  bound  for  New  Orleans,  Louisiana.  On 
board  of  said  vessel  there  were  fourteen  or  fifteen  steerage  passengers. 
One  of  them  was  a  man  of  sixty  years  of  age,  who  had,  according  to 
his  own  account,  been  in  'Bonaparte's  army.  He  had  a  cross  on  one 
arm,  and  a  bullet  immediately  under  the  skin,  near  the  wrist  of  the 
other.  So  superficial  was  the  bullet,  that  I  was  desirous  of  cutting 
it  out.  He  refused  to  permit  me,  stating  that,  when  he  was  with  the 
Spaniards,  the  (+)  cross  always  gave  him  bread  and  butter  upon  its 
exhibition,  and  the  bullet  the  same  whem  he  met  with  an  old  soldier 
or  sailor.  The  captain,  whose  name  was  Edwards,  told  me  that  he 
had'received  from  the  corporated  authorities  of  Kingston  one  doub- 
loon for  each  of  the  steerage  passengers.  I  confidently  assert,  and 
verily  believe  they  were  not  only  paupers,  but  of  the  worst  dye. 

Henry  Caton  appeared,  and  was  sworn  on  the  five  books  of  Moses, 
(he  being  a  Jew,)  and  gave  the  following  answers  to  interrogatories 
propounded  to  him : 

Has  known  persons  in  Bavaria  sent  by  government  to  this  country 
for  state  offences ;  and  has  heard,  whilst  in  Europe,  that  criminals 
have  been  sent  to  this  country  from  Bavaria  and  Hanover,  but  has  no 
knowledge  of  the  fact  himself.  Has  known  a  collection  to  be  made  to 
send  a  poor  person  to  the  United  States. 

Samuel  Cohen  was  sworn  on  the  five  books  of  Moses,  (he  being  a 
Jew,)  and  gave  the  following  answers  to  interrogatories  proj)Ounded 
to  him : 

It  is  a  practice  in  Germany  for  the  government  to  give  passports  to 
criminals  and  paupers,  directing  that  they  shall  proceed  direct  to 
America,  and.  forbidding  their  remaining  in  Germany.  During  the 
last  season,  witness  saw  a  person,  who  had  just  arrived  in  this  city 
from  Germany,  who  had  a  criminal's  passport,  such  as  has  been  men- 
tioned ;  and  the  said  person  was  afterwards  arrested  for  crime  com- 
mitted in  this  city. 

Miss  Amelia  Blogg  was  sworn  on  the  five  books  of  Moses,  (she  being 
a  Jewess.)  She  gave  the  following  answers  to  interrogatories  pro- 
pounded to  her : 

I  arrived  here  from  Bremen,  as  a  passenger,  on  board  the  ship  Re- 
public, on  the  22d  of  December,  1843.  There  were  about  twenty-five 
persons  on  board,  under  the  care  of  a  police  officer,  but  whether  they 
were  criminals  or  paupers  I  do  not  know.  I  have  frequently  heard 
that  persons  cliarged  with  crime  have  been  sent  to  this  country.  One 
of  the  passengers  (a  man)  on  board  the  ship  Republic^  stated  that  he 
had  been  put  in  prison  for  two  years,  charged  with  murder,  when  he 


13G  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

was  sent  to  this  country.  Another  of  the  passengers  on  said  ship 
stated  that  he  had  heen  imprisoned  for  shooting;  a  man  whilst  hunt- 
ing ;  and  that  he  either  broke  out  of  prison  and  came  to  the  country 
or  was  sent  here,  witness  is  not  certain  which.  Tlie  witness  further 
states,  that  a  man,  his  wife,  two  sons,  and  three  or  four  daughters, 
were  sent  from  the  city  of  Hanover  to  New  York,  about  four  years 
since^  for  having  committed  repeated  robberies.  The  half  of  their  ex- 
penses for  coming  over  Avere  paid  by  the  government  of  Hanover,  and 
the  other  half  by  a  congregation  in  that  city. 


No.  241 


Town  authorities  and  cantonal  governments  have  been  in  the  habit 
of  sending  their  paupers  to  the  United  States,  merely  securing  them 
a  passage  to  New  York,  and  not  providing  them  with  a  cent  to  proceed 
inland  after  their  arrival.  Since  the  publication  of  this  act,  those 
that  had  been  sent  this  spring  had  money  sent  after  them,  and  others 
that  are  about  being  shipped,  are  now  provided  with  sufficient  means- 
to  carry  them  to  the  west.  They  do  it,  not  for  the  good  of  the  indi- 
viduals or  for  the  benefit  of  the  country  where  they  are  going,  but 
being  fearful  that,  not  provided  with  means  to  carry  them  into  the 
interior,  after  arriving  at  New  York,  they  might  be  refused  a  passage 
and  returned  to  them  by  the  American  government.  It  is  out  of  the 
question  to  put  a  stop  to  it  entirely ;  yet  I  think  I  have  succeeded  in 
relieving  the  city  of  New  York  from  the  offence  of  maintaining  Swiss 
and  German  paupers  for  the  future,  as  they  will  come  prepared  here- 
after to  pay  their  way  to  the  far  west.  Immigration  this  year  will 
far  exceed  any  previous  years ;  and  I  am  convinced  if  I  had  not  taken 
this  measures  your  city  would  have  again  been  overrun  by  these 
destitute  paupers,  who,  when  winter  came,  would  have  to  be  provided 
for  in  your  almshouses  and  hospitals.  With  high  regard,  your  lium- 
ble  servant, 

G.  H.  GOUNDIE, 
United  States  Consul  in  ^loiizerland. 


No.  25. 


The  following  is  a  letter  addressed  by  Mayor  Wood,  of  New  York, 
to  the  President,  in  reference  to  the  shipment  of  foreign  paupers  and 
criminals  to  the  port  of  New  York  : 

Mayor's  Office,  Neio  Yorh,  January  2,  1855. 

Dear  Sir  :  There  can  be  no  doubt  that,  for  many  years,  this  port 
has  been  made  a  sort  of  penal  colony  for  felons  and  paupers,  by  the 
local  authorities  of  several  of  the  continental  European  nations.     The 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.  137 

desperate  character  of  a  portion  of  the  people  arriving  here  from  those 
countt'ies,  together  with  the  increase  of  crime  and  misery  among  that 
class  of  our  population,  with  otlier  facts  before  us,  prove  conclusively 
that  such  is  the  case. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  refer  to  the  gross  wrong  thus  perpetrated  upon 
this  city.  It  requires  from  me  no  allusion  to  the  jeopardy  of  our  lives 
and  property  from  tliis  cause.  Men  who,  by  a  long  career  of  crime 
and  destitution,  have  learned  to  recognize  no  laws,  either  civil  or  na- 
tural, cannot  fail  to  produce  feelings  of  terror  at  their  approach. 

The  inherent  right  of  every  community  to  protect  itself  from  dangers 
arising  from  such  immigration,  cannot  be  questioned.  New  York  has 
submitted  to  it  long  enough.  The  disease  and  pauperism  arriving 
here  almost  daily,  from  abroad,  is,  of  itself,  a  sufficient  evil;  but  when 
to  it  is  added  crime,  we  must  be  permitted  to  remonstrate.  We  ask 
the  interference  of  the  general  government.  As  it  is  its  duty  to  pro- 
tect us  from  foreign  aggression,  with  ball  and  cannon,  so  is  it  its  duty 
to  protect  us  against  an  enemy  more  insidious  and  destructive,  though 
coming  in  another  form. 

I  call  your  attention  to  this  subject,  hoping  it  will  receive  from  you 
that  action  which  its  very  great  importance  to  the  whole  country  de- 
mands. 

I  am  very  truly  yours,  &c.. 


His  Excellency  Franklin  Pierce, 

President  of  the  United  Sates. 


FERNANDO  WOOD, 

Mayor. 


No.  26. 


On  the  23d  of  January,  1855,  James  Cooper,  of  Pennsylvania, 
submitted  the  following  resolutions  in  the  United  States  Senate,  in 
presenting  which  he  made  an  able  speech,  showing  the  extent  of  the 
importation  of  foreign  criminals  and  paupers,  and  the  evils  resulting 
therefrom  to  our  country  and  its  institutions,  but  the  Senate  took  no 
further  action  upon  the  subject : 

Resolved,  That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be,  and  he  is 
hereby,  respectfully  requested  to  cause  the  Secretary  of  State  and  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  respectively,  to  communicate  to  the  Senate 
such  information  as  may  be  contained  in  their  several  departments, 
relating  to  the  transportation  of  convicts  and  paupers  into  the  United 
States  from  foreign  countries,  and  what  agency  the  governmentsto 
which  they  belong  have  had  in  sending  them  hither.  Also,  such  in- 
formation as  they  may  possess  relative  to  the  voluntary  immigration 
into  the  United  States  of  the  above  classes,  the  numbers  of  each  that 
have  arrived  here  within  the  last  two  years,  whether  voluntary  or 
through  the  compulsory  agency  of  their  respective  governments. 

Resolved,  That  the  Committee  on  the  Judiciary  be,  and  the  same  is 
hereby,  instructed  to  inquire  what  legislation,  if  any,  be  necessary  to 
prevent  the  governments  of  foreign  countries  from  transporting  into 


138  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS. 

the  United  States  convicts  and  paupers.  Also,  whether  any,  and 
what,  legisLition  is  necessary  to  prevent  the  voluntary  immigration 
into  the  United  States  from  foreign  countries  of  either  of  the  above 
classes  of  persons. 

The  following  are  extracts  from  his  speech,  delivered  on  the  occasion : 
I  presume,  Mr.  President,  Senators  are  aware  that  a  policy,  which 
scarcely  seeks  concealment,  prevails  amongst  several  of  the  States  of 
continental  Europe,  in  virtue  of  which,  convicted  and  unconvicted 
criminals  and  paupers  are  transported  to  the  United  States,  at  the  ex- 
pense, and  by  the  direction  of  their  governments.  This  policy,  which 
is  as  unjust  as  it  is  unfriendly,  should  be  put  an  end  to  by  legislation, 
if  it  cannot  be  accomplished  by  negotiation.  Nations  in  amity  with 
us  have  no  right  to  make  of  the  United  States  a  penal  colony  ;  yet 
they  are  becoming  so,  by  the  toleration  with  which  our  government 
has  regarded  the  practice  of  sending  hither  paupers  and  felons.  There 
is  scarcely  an  immigrant  ship  which  arrives  in  our  ports  that  is  not, 
to  some  extent,  freighted  with  this  kind  of  cargo.  This  has  long  been 
an  evil ;  but  latterly  it  has  increased  in  magnitude,  and  to  such  an 
extent  as  to  be  justly  regarded  with  alarm.  But  a  month  or  two  since, 
a  single  vessel  landed  in  New  York  one  hundred  and  fifty  paupers, 
and  fifteen  or  sixteen  convicts,  wearing,  as  the  badges  of  their  convic- 
tion and  guilty  chains  upon  their  limbs.  More  recently,  another  ves- 
sel, freighted  with  a  similar  cargo,  was  v/recked  on  Sable  Island,  from 
whence  the  passengers  were  carried  to  Halifax,  and  from  Halifax  were 
brought  to  New  York^  by  the  way  of  Boston.  By  an  affidavit  made 
by  one  of  these  passengers,  it  appears  that  they  are  natives  of  Swit- 
zerland, who,  being  unable  to  support  themselves  at  home,  were  sent 
hither  at  the  expense  of  the  municipality  to  which  they  belonged. 
The  following  is  the  affidavit: 

^^  City  and  county  of  New  York,  ss :  We,  the  undersigned,  being 
duly  sworn,  do  depose  and  say  out,  that  we  and  our  families,  whose 
number  is  correctly  taken  down  opposite  to  our  names,  on  the  foot  of 
this  affidavit,  are  natives  of  Switzerland  ;  that  they  were  poor  in  their 
own  country  and  could  not  support  themselves  there  any  longer  ;  that, 
therefore,  the  mayor  of  their  village  has  paid  their  passage-money  di- 
rect to  New  York,  and  that  therefore  their  passage-money  has  not 
been  paid  by  these  deponents  ;  that  they  embarked  at  Antwerp  on 
board  the  ship  Arcadia,  which  vessel  was  intended  for  New  York, 
but  wrecked  at  Sable  Island  ;  that  they  sailed  from  Boston  on  board 
the  passenger  steamboat  State  of  Maine,  and  arrived  in  the  port  of 
New  York  on  board  the  said  steamer,  on  the  2d  day  of  January,  1855  ; 
that  they  are  now  quite  destitute  and  without  any  means  for  support, 
except  from  commissioners  of  immigration  ;  and  further  they  do  not 
say.  ^ 

[Here  follow  signatures.'] 

''Sworn  before  me  this  10th  dav  of  Januarv,  1855. 

*"  EDWARD  CASSEELY, 

' '  Commissioner  of  Deeds. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS,  139 


But  this  is  not  the  only  case  of  the  kind.  Lately  (so  lately  that 
they  have  probably  not  yet  arrived)  the  Sardinian  government  sent 
over,  in  a  national  vessel,  (the  Degennes,  man-of-war,)  30  or  40  con- 
victs, men  of  desjicrate  fortunes  and  lives  :  old  convicts,  who  will  here 
become  schoolmasters  of  vice  and  learned  professors  of  crime.  The 
Tribune  has  the  following  paragraph  in  relation  to  the  subject : 

"  Information  has  been  received  here,  from  a  private  source  worthy 
of  the  highest  confidence,  to  the  effect  that  the  o4  i)ersons  in  question 
are  not  mere  political  offenders,  but  are  convicted  criminals  of  the  most 
dangerous  description,  taken  from  the  prisons  of  that  country." 

Thus  we  see,  Mr.  President,  that  it  is  not  only  thriftless  paupers 
who  are  sent  liither  to  add  to  the  burden  of  our  ])oor-laws,  and  stand 
'between  native  misfortune  and  the  relief  provided  for  it  by  charity. 
Felons,  convicts,  deep-dyed  in  crime,  are  sent  to  this  country  by  their 
governments,  to  practice  their  infamous  industry,  and  inoculate  our 
people  with  the  vices  of  the  old  world. 

It  is  a  common  practice  amongst  several  of  the  states  of  continental 
Europe  to  auction  ofi"to  the  lowest  bidder  their  paupers,  and,  in  some 
instances,  the  inmates  of  their  prisons  and  penitentiaries.  Agents  of 
the  great  passenger  lines  of  packet  ships  are  maintained  in  the  states 
for  the  purpose  of  making  arrangements  with  the  municipal  author- 
ities of  the  various  towns,  for  the  removal  of  their  paupers  to  Antwerp, 
Bremen,  Havre,  or  other  seaport  towns,  with  a  view  to  their  trans- 
portation to  the  United  States.  Tu  England,  or  rather  Ireland,  a 
similar  practice  is  pursued  :  and  Miss  Dix,  amiable,  benevolent,  and 
philanthropic  as  she  has  proved  herself  to  be,  by  a  life  of  devotion  to 
the  interests  of  suffering  and  unfortunate  humanity,  writes  to  her 
friends  in  this  country  from  Ireland,  where  she  is  now  sojourning,  in 
terms  of  indignation,  excited  by  witnessing  the  practices  of  the  English 
government,  in  pouring  upon  our  shores  the  polluted  population  of 
their  hospitals,  almshouses,  and  prisons. 

Mr.  President,  it  is  time  that  a  stop  should  be  put  to  these  prac- 
tices on  the  part  of  the  governments  of  Europe.  If  it  cannot  be  effected 
by  negotiation,  surely  we  have  the  power  to  do  it  by  legislation.  The 
inherent  right  of  every  community  to  protect  itself  against  the  conta- 
gion of  vice  and  crime,  as  well  as  of  disease,  will  hardly  be  questioned. 
We  have  our  quarantine  laws  to  protect  us  against  the  introduction 
of  small  pox,  cholera,  and  other  kinds  of  pestilence  ;  and  these  laws 
we  enforce  even  to  the  detriment  of  commerce.  But  hitherto  we  have 
neglected  to  guard  ourselves  against  a  more  destructive  pestilence  than 
the  small-pox  or  cholera.  While  our  seaports  and  the  gates  of  our  * 
cities  and  towns  have  been  closed  against  the  contagion  of  disease, 
they  have  been  opened  wide  to  admit  the  more  fatal  contagion  which 
is  flowing  upon  us,  in  the  shape  of  pauperism  and  crime,  from  the 
prisons  and  lazar-houses  of  Europe.  We  dread  fever  and  the  plague, 
and  endeavor  to  exclude  them,  while  "the  pestilence  which  walketh 
in  darkness  and  blighteth  at  mid-day,' "  has  been  suffered  to  enter  with- 
out let  or  hindrance.  It  is  time  we  should  open  our  eyes  and  look 
the  evil  in  the  face ;  we  should  examine  our  prison  and  alms-house 
statistics,  and  provide  a  remedy,  cost  what  it  may. 


140  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

An  insult  to  our  flag,  by  a  failure  to  salute  it  with  the  required 
number  of  guns,  a  refusal  to  indemnify  a  citizen  for  a  wrong  committed 
on  liis  person  or  property,  or  the  neglect  of  some  point  of  national 
etiquette  by  a  foreign  government,  is  always  fgllowed  by  a  demand 
for  explanation  and  apology ;  and  if  explanation  be  denied,  our  na- 
tional pride  takes  fire,  and  war,  ultima  ratio  regum,  the  last  argument 
of  kings,  is  immediatelj'  threatened.  But  against  emptying  upon 
us  the  contents  of  hospitals,  and  houses  of  refuge,  and  prisons,  we 
have  nothing  to  object ;  we  are  tamely  acquiescent,  for  fear,  probably, 
that  opposition  might  be  construed  into  hostility  to  other  classes  of 
immigrant  foreigners,  whose  votes  may  be  esteemed  necessary  to  the 
success  of  this  party  or  that.  Operated  on  by  motives  so  unworthy 
and  unmanly,  American  statesmen  and  legislators  have  stood  by,  with 
folded  arms,  and  permitted  the  fairest  heritage  that  Heaven  has  ever* 
vouchsafed  to  a  people,  to  be  overrun  by  the  inmates  of  foreign  prisons, 
and  the  corrupted  and  impoverished  hordes  of  foreign  capitals.  I  am 
willing  that  this  country  should  continue  to  be  the  asylum  of  the  op- 
pressed of  every  land  ;  tliat  out  of  its  abundance  the  virtuous  needy 
should  be  fed  as  heretofore  ;  that  in  its  institutions  they  should  find 
protection  for  person  and  property.  But,  Mr.  President,  the  time 
has  come  when  the  door  of  admission  should  be  closed  forever  against 
all  settled  and  legalized  paupers,  and  all  persons  convicted  or  sus- 
pected of  crime,  who  shall  be  sent  hither  through  the  agency  of  their 
respective  governments.  If  a  stop  be  not  speedily  put  to  this  kind  of 
immigration,  the  fountains  of  public  morality  will  be  corrupted,  and 
the  public  safety  compromised.  Can  it  be  otherwise,  when  those  who 
are  brought  here  are  the  vicious,  the  turbulent,  conspiritors  against 
order,  pickpockets,  thieves,  burglars,  and  murderers  ?  These  people 
are  of  the  stuff  of  which  mobs  are  made  ;  thev  are  the  class  which  in- 
vade  the  purity  of  the  ballot-box,  interfere  Avitli  the  freedom  of  the 
elective  franchise,  and  disturb  public  order. 

In  the  great  cities  of  the  republic,  in  New  York,  Philadelphia, 
Boston,  Baltimore,  St.  Louis,  and  New  Orleans,  the  evils  wdiich  have 
grown  out  of  the  admission  of  these  classes  of  immigrants  have  be- 
come gigantic — frightful.  Not  only  have  the  irresolute  and  timid 
become  alarmed  at  the  magnitude  of  the  mischief  which  threatens  the 
public  peace  and  endangers  the  public  morals,  but  firm-minded  and 
far-sighted  statesmen  have  seen  and  appreciated  the  imminence  of  the 
danger,  and  the  necessity  for  prompt  and  energetic  measures  to  ar- 
rest it. 

I  am  aware,  Mr.  President,  that  it  is  not  fully  within  the  constitu- 
tional competency  of  Congress  or  of  the  general  government,  to  provide 
what  might  be  regarded  as  an  adequate  remedy  for  the  mischiefs  but 
too  likely  to  grow  out  of  these  organizations.  The  President  of  the 
United  States  has  but  a  modified  control  over  the  volunteers  and  other 
militia  of  the  several  States.  To  the  States,  therefore,  and  the  gov- 
ernors of  the  States,  it  belongs  to  remedy  the  present  existing  evil. 
But  Congress,  also,  has  a  duty  to  perform  in  reference  to  this  subject, 
byproviding,  as  far  as  possible,  against  the  admission  into  thecountry  of 
those  dangerous  and  desperate  men  wlio  come  here  from  foreign  work- 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  .      141 

houses  and  prisons,  by  the  compulsory  agency  of  the  governments  to 
which  they  belong.  If  an  adequscte  security  against  the  future  trans- 
portation of  this  class  of  men  into  the  country  cannot  be  provided  by 
negotiation,  it  should  be  done  by  legislation.  Congress  has  the  power 
to  make  such  regulations  as  will  measurably,  at  least,  close  the  door 
against  the  admission  of  this  class  of  immigrants  ;  and  it  will  be  re- 
creant to  one  of  its  highest  duties,  if  it  should  fail  to  exercise  it.  Not 
only  is  the  corruption  of  the  public  morals  to  be  apprehended  from 
the  admission  of  these  men,  but  the  public  peace  and  security  are  like- 
wise endangered  by  it.  Private  property,  health,  life,  morals,  repu- 
tation, everything  dear  to  communities  and  individuals  is  endangered 
by  receiving  this  class  of  men.  Is  it  not  time,  Mr.  President,  in 
view  of  such  facts  as  these,  that  the  most  vigorous  measures  should 
be  adopted  to  prevent  the  country  from  becoming  a  mere  jjenal  colony 
of  the  governments  of  Eurojie?  Hating  our  institutions,  and  jealous 
of  the  unexampled  progress  of  tlie  nation  in  wealth,  power,  and  great- 
ness, yet  afraid  to  assail  us  openly,  does  not  their  conduct,  in  this 
respect,  almost  look  as  if  it  were  the  result  of  a  determination  on  their 
part  to  corrupt  tlie  fountains  of  our  prosperity  by  sapping  the  morals 
of  our  people?  For  a  far  less  offence  than  that  which  is  continually 
being  committed  against  us  by  the  governments  of  continental  Europe, 
war  would  be  justifiable.  But  to  this  extremity  we  need  not  proceed. 
There  are  other  remedial  means  less  costly,  and  more  effectual,  if  not 
to  punish  the  offending  governments,  at  least  to  prevent  the  recur- 
rence of  the  offence ;  and  to  these  we  must  have  resort,  if  we  would  stay 
the  flood  of  i)auperism  and  crime  flowing  in  upon  us  from  the  old  world. 

And  who,  Mr.  President,  permit  me  ask,  will  resist  the  attempt,  or 
be  offended  at  its  success  ?  Will  the  honest  foreigner — who  comes 
bona  fide  to  escape  oppression  at  home,  and  enjoy  liberty  here — object 
because  we  refuse  to  permit  the  asylum  which  he  has  sought  as  a  home 
for  himself  and  his  children,  to  become  the  refuge  of  thieves  and  mur- 
derers, or  the  thriftless  inmates  of  European  work-houses?  Our  advan- 
tage and  the  advantage  of  our  children  will  be  his  advantage  and  the 
advantage  of  his  children,  from  generation  to  generation.  Him,  there- 
fore we  cannot  offend  by  pursuing  the  course  which  the  national  safety 
demands.  Who,  then,  will  complain?  It  is  easy  to  answer.  Those 
who  will  complain  are  the  unfeeling,  but  calculating  despots  who  send 
hither,  by  compulsion,  the  wretched  and  miserable  inmates  of  their 
almshouses  and  hospitals,  reduced  to  poverty  and  want,  and  afflicted 
by  disease  through  the  burdens  and  hardships  occasioned  by  unjust 
wars,  waged  for  conquest  or  to  gratify  pride.  They  will  complain, 
(but  not  openly,)  because  instead  of  fifty  shillings  paid  per  head  for 
transporting  paupers  to  this  country,  treble  that  sum  will  be  required 
to  maintain  them  at  home.  Another  class  may  also  object  to  the 
measures  which  we  may  take  for  our  own  security — I  mean  the  convicts 
and  felons,  who  will  be  left  to  expiate  their  crimes  in  the  solitude  of  na- 
tive prisons,  instead  of  pursuing  a  career  of  prosperous  villany  here, 
because  their  rulers  Avill  not  dare  to  turn  them  loose  at  home,  though 
willing  to  do  it  here. 

But,  Mr.  President,  there  is  still  another  class  that  has  a  right  to 
complain  of  the  tardiness  of  the  government  in  arresting  this  evil ; 


142  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

and  they  do  complain,  and  with  justice  of  the  composure  with  which 
the  government  looks  on  and  sees  the  public  burdens  increased,  morals 
endangered,  and  the  peace  and  order  of  society  menaced.  They  com- 
plain, also,  and  with  reason,  that,  in  consequence  of  the  admission  of 
a  class  of  immigrants,  who  become  a  charge  on  the  community  from 
the  moment  of  their  landing,  their  labor  is  unduly  taxed,  and  their 
earnings,  intended  for  the  support  of  their  OAvn  families,  a})propriated 
to  a  purpose  that  would  be  unnecessary,  if  the  government  Avould  per- 
form its  duty  properly. 

It  is  not  only  the  American  laborer  that  suffers  from  the  causes  to 
which  I  have  referred.  The  foreigner,  who  has  c(3me  hither,  volun- 
tarily to  take  advantage  of  the  benefits  of  a  free  government,  is  equally 
a  suiferer.  His  lal)or,  as  well  as  the  labor  of  liis  native  neighbor  is 
taxed,  and  the  reward  of  his  industry  curtailed  in  the  payment  of  poor 
rates,  and  otlier  levies  for  the  maintenance  of  almshouses  and  hos- 
pitals. 

No  one,  Mr.  President,  would  object  to  contributions  levied  for  the 
support  of  the  unfortunate  poor  of  their  own  community,  or  those 
afflicted  by  disease.  But  every  community  should  support  its  own 
paupers,  and  provide  for  the  comforts  of  its  own  indigent  sick.  In 
Grreat  Britain,  one  parish  is  not  bound  to  support  tlie  poor  of  another ; 
much  less  the  poor  of  other  countries.  And  such  is  tlie  law  in  most  of 
the  States  of  the  Union.  But  by  the  unfriendly  and  dishonest  practices 
of  foreign  governments,  the  industry  of  our  own  citizens,  natives,  and 
naturalized,  is  taxed  to  support  foreign  paupers,  sent  hither  in  viola- 
tion alike  of  comity  and  justice. 


No.  27. 


Leipsic,  June  4,  1855. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  for  some  time  the  governments  of  some 
States,  and  also  the  authorities  of  several  commimities,  have  deemed 
it  convenient  to  free  themselves  from  their  }>aupers  by  shipping  them 
to  the  United  States.  It  is  also  notorious  that  criminals,  after  having 
suffered  ])unishnient,  have  in  the  same  manner  been  transported  to 
the  United  States,  with  the  view  to  free  tlie  community  of  them  for- 
ever. In  consequence  of  this,  a  system  of  economy  was  adopted  pro- 
ductive of  unavoidable  evils,  as  they  (the  immigrants)  were  supplied 
merely  Avith  money  sufficient  for  the  payment  of  their  passages,  and 
hence,  on  their  arrival  at  distant  ports,  being  destitute  of  all  means 
of  support,  they  were  compelled  immediately  to  apply  for  aid.  and 
were,  therefore,  regarded  as  very  unwelcome  visitors. 

These  ])ractices  are  certainly  as  inhuman  as  they  aru  imprudent, 
but  the  government  of  Saxony  has  not  at  any  time  had  recourse  to 
this  system  of  economy. 

We  have  been  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  immigration  affairs 
of  Germany  for  the  last' eight  years,  during  which  time  not  a  single 
case  which  could  implicate  the  kingdom  of  Saxony  in  such  action  has 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  143 

ever  come  within  our  knowledge.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  a  subject  of 
regret  to  us  that,  with  very  few  exceptions,  the  greater  part  of  those 
who  immigrate  from  Saxony  are  composed  cliiefly  of  tlie  wealthier 
class  of  our  people  and  our  best  mechanics.  We,  therefore,  instead 
of  gaining,  are  put  to  a  loss  of  millions  of  dollars,  and  of  the  best  por- 
tion of  our  honest  and  most  valuable  citizens. 

As  it  appears  the  G-erman  immigration  to  the  United  States  is  be- 
coming too  powerful  and  troublesome,  you  may  assure  the  American 
authorities  tliat  a  speedy  change  in  this  respect  is  unavoidable.  The 
decrease  of  immigration  in  general,  and  to  North  America  in  particu- 
lar, during  the  last  year,  has  become  so  apparent  that  Ave  are  war- 
ranted in  asserting  that  the  immigration  of  this  year  will  not  be  iialf 
so  numerous  as  that  of  last  year.  The  seaports  present  quite  a  deso- 
late appearance  at  the  usual  time  of  immigration,  but  the  accounts 
which  we  receive  from  all  the  interior  parts  of  Germany,  of  the  great 
change  in  immigration,  is  still  more  remarkable.  Hundreds  <.)f  thou- 
sands who  intended  to  immigrate  have  entirely  abandoned  the  notion. 
Most  respectfully, 

A.  SHULTZE. 

The  Directors  of  the  National  Society  of  German  Immigration. 


Leipsic,  June  9,  1855. 

I  beg  leave  to  add  a  few  remarks  to  the  subject  of  our  verbal  con- 
versation. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  European  governments  and  principalities 
have  been  in  the  practice  of  freeing  themselves  irom  their  paupers, 
and  even  of  their  more  or  less  guilty  criminals,  by  sending  them  to 
America  and  paying  the  cost  of  their  voyage  to  the  seaports  and  the 
passage  from  there  to  America,  without  making  provision  for  the 
wants  of  this  unhappy  class  of  people  to  enable  them  to  commence  an 
honest  trade. 

Without  any  means  of  support,  they  become  a  burden  to  the  au- 
thorities abroad,  and  it  is  to  be  Avondered  that  measures  have  not,  ere 
this,  been  taken  to  put  a  stop  to  tliis  practice. 

But  I  am  happy  to  state  that  our  fatherland.  Saxony,  is  free  from 
such  an  imjiutation.  The  immigrants  from  here  Avere  all  powerful, 
wealtliy,  and  industrious  people,  supidied  Avith  means,  yes,  even 
wealth,  such  as  I  could  only  see  come  here  with  a  feeling  of  sadness, 
and  such  as  America  will  receive  Avith  o})en  arms. 

For  myself,  I  have  never  taken  part  in  the  above  mentioned  ailairs, 
and  would  not  give  my  sanction. 

Accept  the  assurance  of  mv  highest  esteem,  from  yours, 

GEORGE  SCHREIDER, 
General  Acjent  for  the  German  Immigration. 


144  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PArPERS. 


No.    28. 

On  the  14th  of  February,  1855,  Mayor  Wood  addressed  the  follow- 
ing letter  to  the  Belgian  consul  at  New  York,  in  relation  to  the  Bel- 
gian paupers  referred  to  by  {Senator  Cooper  in  his  speech  in  the 
United  States  Senate,  and  also  a  communication  on  the  same  subject 
to  the  Commissioners  of  Immigration  : — 

Mayor's  Office,  Neic  York,  February  14. 

Sir  :  After  mature  deliberation  and  an  examination  of  the  testimony 
taken  before  Justice  Bogart,  together  with  additional  information 
from  the  American  consul  at  Antwerp,  just  received,  I  am  reluctantly 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  the  persons  now  in  the  city  prison,  who 
came  as  immigrant  passengers  by  the  ship  Rochambeau,  from  Ant- 
werp, are  not  of  a  character  to  be  permitted  to  go  at  large  in  this  city 
or  in  this  country :  and  while  we  cannot  set  them  at  liberty,  we  can- 
not longer  retain  them  in  custody.  Some  measures  must  be  adopted 
at  once  to  relieve  the  city  from  the  expense  of  providing  for  them,  and 
at  the  same  time  to  secure  us  from  the  danger  of  their  presence  abroad 
in  the  country.  Therefore,  as  it  is  beyond  question,  from  the  evidence 
before  me,  and  wliich  is  open  to  your  examination,  that  they  were 
embarked  at  Antwerp  by  the  order  and  at  the  expense  of  the  Belgian 
local  authorities,  I  suggest  that  they  be  returned  to  their  own  country 
at  the  cost  of  the  Belgian  government,  whose  agent  you  are  in  this 
city.  I  see  no  other  resource.  Humanity  and  justice  require  that 
they  should  no  longer  be  retained  in  prison  in  this  city,  where  they 
have  committed  no  otfence  ;  and  self-preservation  requires  that  we 
shall  prevent  them  being  set  at  liberty,  Avith  the  belief  that  their 
presence  would  be  dangerous  to  our  property.  From  your  high  char- 
acter in  this  city,  knowledge  and  appreciation  of  our  institutions,  I 
am  confident  you  will  comprehend  the  necessity  which  forces  me  to 
take  tliis  position,  and  promptly  to  respond  to  the  request  that  these 
people  be  re-embarked  for  Antwerp  without  delay. 

I  am,  with  great  respect,  vour  obedient  servant, 

FERNANDO  WOOD, 

3Iayor. 

P.  S.  Tiie  ship  Henry  Reed,  which  arrived  at  this  port  from  Ant- 
werp on  the  10th  instant,  had  on  board  six  or  eight  of  the  same 
class  of  immigrants,  sent  by  the  Belgian  authorities,  under  the 
same  circumstances  as  tliose  now  referred  to,  per  Rochambeau  ;  but 
my  information  of  the  fact,  which  is  not  official,  did  not  reach  me 
Tiutil  the  loth  instant,  wlien  too  late  to  take  action,  and  they  are  now 
in  our  midst,  to  add  to  the  crime  and  destitution  which  are  surround- 
ing me  on  all  sides. 

The  Commissioners  of  Immigration  thereupon  adopted  the  follow- 
ing ])reamble  and  resolution  : 

Whereas,  lately,  more  ships  bringing  immigrant  paupers,  or  other 
improper  persons,  to  this  city,  have  arrived  from  Antwerp  than  any 
other  port,  therefore. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  145 

Resolved,  That  Henry  W.  T.  Mali,  the  Belgian  consul  at  this  port,  be 
requested  to  inform  his  government — 1.  Of  the  above  fact.  2.  That 
there  are  persons,  known  to  this  commission,  doing  business  at  Ant- 
werp, who  are  especially  instrumental  in  forwarding  all  persons  dan- 
gerous and  injurious  to  society.  3.  That  the  commissioners  will 
hereafter  investigate,  especially,  all  passengers  arriving  in  ships  com- 
ing from  Antwerp. 


No.  29. 


On  the  28th  of  March,  1855,  Mr.  Redfield,  collector  of  the  port  of 
New  York,  forwarded  the  following  to  Mayor  V/ood,  which  he  received 
from  the  United  States  consul,  at  Zurich,  Switzerland.  It  speaks  for 
itself: 

U.  S.  Consulate,  Zurich,  Switzerland,  3Iarch  3,  1855. 

Dear  Sir:  I  have  just  been  informed  that  the  Commune  of  Nie- 
derwyl  (Zofingen,)  in  the  canton  of  Argovia,  in  Switzerland,  have 
been  forwarding  320  of  their  poorest  people  to  the  United  States. 
They  left  a  few  days  since  for  Havre,  with  the  intention  of  sailing  for 
New  York. 

Enclosed  is  an  extract  from  a  paper  wliich  is  published  in  the  same 
canton,  and  which  fully  endorses  it.     It  says  : 

"A  few  days  since  the  commune  of  Niederwyl,  district  Zofingen,  in 
the  canton  of  Argovia,  sent  320  of  their  poorest  people  to  the  United 
States,  in  spite  of  all  admonition." 

I  wrote  to  our  consul  at  Havre,  giving  him  the  information,  and 
requesting  him  to  ascertain  the  name  or  names  of  the  vessels  in  which 
they  were  to  sail,  or  had  sailed,  and  to  give  you  the  information,  so  that 
you,  or  the  city  officials,  could  be  on  the  lookout,  and  judge  for  your- 
selves. 

I  am  -told  that  in  a  short  time  another  large  company  is  to  follow 
from  a  neighboring  district,  and  that  all  are  provided  with  legal  pass- 
ports. I  shall  feel  it  my  duty,  whenever  any  thing  of  this  kind  comes 
to  my  notice,  to  give  either  the  collector,  or  the  mayor  of  the  city, 
information  of  it. 

Very  respectfuUv,  vour  obedient  servant, 

G.  H.  GOUNDIE. 


No.  30. 


In  addition  to  the  multitude  of  facts  already  adduced,  showing  the 
extent  of  the  immigration  of  foreign  convicts  and  paupers,  tlie  follow- 
ing letter  from  the  State  Department  at  Washington,  recently  pub- 
lished in  the  New  Orleans  papers,  shows  the  means  resorted  to  by 
those  engaged  in  transporting  them  hither  to  avoid  detection: 
H.  ilep.  359 10 


146  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 

Department  of  State,  Washington,  September  ?,,  1855. 

Sir  :  I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  to  you,  for  your  information,  the 
following  extract  from  a  dispatch  dated  August  4th  ult.,  received  at 
this  department  from  Mr.  A.  D.  Gall,  United  States  consul  at  Bre- 
men: 

"  The  circular  issued  by  the  immigration  agents  in  the  interior  of 
Germany,  caution  immigrants  who  are  deformed,  crippled,  or  maimed, 
&c.,  against  taking  passage  to  New  York_,  and  advise  them  to  go  by 
way  of  Baltimore,  New  Orleans,  or  Quebec,  where  the  laws  prohibit- 
ing the  landing  of  immigrants  of  the  above  classes  do  not  apply." 
I  am,  sir,  with  higli  respect,  your  obedient  servant, 

W.  HUNTER,  Assistant  Secretary, 

The  Mayor  of  Neio  Orlerms,  Louisiana. 


No.  31. 

CIRCULAR. 

[No.  1,898.]  Liege,  Belgium,  BlarcJi  14,  1854. 

Immigrants  for  the  United  States.  Transportation. — Gentlemen: 
The  transports  for  immigrants  for  the  United  States  will  take  their 
departure  from  Antwerp.  A  large  number  of  vessels  are  prepared 
already  to  leave  at  various  i)eriods  of  this  month.  A  certain  number 
of  liberated  prisoners  from  Vilrorde,  and  from  several  poor-houses, 
(depot  de  mendicete,)  are  on  the  point  of  departing.  The  price  of  the 
passage,  all  expenses  included,  is  180  francs,  which  sum  should  be 
paid  in  advance  at  the  bureau  of  the  governor  of  the  province.  I  beg 
of  you  to  let  me  know  as  soon  as  possible  if  your  district  has  any  pas- 
sengers to  be  forwarded.  Each  individual  should  be  sent  to  the  jail 
(maison  d'arret)  of  Antwerp,  and  have  in  his  possession  simply  a  cer- 
tificate on  the  following  model :   "The  Inirgomaster  of  the  district  of 

,  province  of  Leige,  Belgium,  certifies  that (gi"^'e  the 

age,  place  of  birth,  parentage,)  is  unmarked."     The  departure  will 
take  place  during  the  year,  every  fortnight. 

The  Commissary  of  the  Arrondissement, 

TH.  FLECHET. 

The  Burgomaster  and  Council  of . 


No.  32. 

JUDGE  WILSON'S  SPEECH.— Extract. 


"  The  gentleman  says  tliat  it  is  unfortunate  in  another  point  of 
view  ;  it  means  to  prohibit  the  introduction  of  white  people  from 
Europe,  as  this  tax  may  deter  tliem  from  coming  among  us.  A  little 
impartiality  and  attention  will  discover  the  care  that  the  convention 
took  in  selecting  their  language.     The  words  are — '  the  migration  or 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  147 

importation  of  sucli  persons,  &c.,  shall  not  be  prohibited  by  Congress 
prior  to  the  year  1808,  but  a  tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such 
importation. '  It  is  observable  here  that  the  term  migration  is  dropped, 
when  a  tax  or  duty  is  mentioned,  so  that  Congress  have  power  to  im- 
pose the  tax  only  on  those  imported.'"' — (See  Elliott's  Debates  vol.  2., 
p.  453.) 


No.  33. 

JUDGE  IREDELL'S  SPEECH— Extract. 

"Mr.  Chairman:  The  worthy  gentleman,  I  believe,  has  misunder- 
stood this  clause,  which  runs  in  the  following  words  :  'The  migra- 
tion or  importation  of  such  persons  as  any  of  the  States  now  existing 
shall  think  proper  to  admit,  shall  not  be  prohibited  by  the  Congress 
prior  to  the  year  1808,  but  a  tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such  impor- 
tation, not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  person.'  Now,  sir,  observe 
that  the  eastern  States,  who  long  ago  have  abolished  slaves^  did  not 
approve  of  the  expression  slaves  ;  they  therefore  used  another  that 
answered  the  same  purpose.  The  committee  will  observe  the  distinc- 
tion between  the  two  words  migration  and  importation.  The  first 
part  of  the  clause  will  extend  to  persons  who  come  into  this  country 
as  free  people,  or  as  slaves  bought.  But  the  last  part  extends  towards 
slaves  only.  The  word  migration  refers  to  free  persons  ;  but  the  word 
importation  refers  to  slaves,  because  free  people  cannot  be  said  to  be 
imported.  The  tax,  therefore,  is  only  to  be  laid  on  slaves  who  are 
imported,  and  not  free  persons  who  migrate." — (See  Elliott's  Debates, 
vol.  4.,  p.  101.) 


No.  34. 

ROBERT  GOODLOE  HARPER'S  LETTER.— Extract. 


cc 


The  design  of  this  clause  was  to  prevent  the  general  governmenl 
from  prohibiting  the  importation  of  slaves,  but  the  same  reasons  which 
caused  them  to  strike  out  the  word  '  national,'  and  not  admit  the  word 
'  stamps,'  influenced  them  here  to  guard  against  the  word  'slaves.' 
They  anxiously  sought  to  avoid  the  admission  of  expressions  which 
might  be  odious  in  tlie  cars  of  Americans,  although  they  were  willing 
to  admit  into  their  system  those  things  which  the  expressions  signified ; 
and  hence  it  is  that  the  clause  is  so  worded  as  really  to  authorize  the 
general  government  to  impose  a  duty  often  dollars  on  every  foreigner 
who  comes  into  a  State  to  become  a  citizen,  whether  he  comes  absolutely 
free,  or  (|ualified  so  as  a  servant;  although  this  is  contrary  to  the 
design  of  the  framers,  and  the  duty  was  only  meant  to  extend  to  the 
importation  of  slaves." — {See  Elliott's  Debates,  vol.  I.,  p.  372.) 


148  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS. 


No.  35. 

So  in  the  cases  oi  Smith  v.  Tm-ner,  and  Norris  v.  City  of  Boston,  in 
which  the  constitutionality  of  the  passenger  laws  of  New  York  and 
Massaclnisetts  came  under  consideration,  and  were  declared  void. 
Justice  McKinley  delivered  the  following  opinion  : 

The  first  clause  of  the  ninth  section  and  first  article  of  the  Constitu- 
tion provides,  "  that  the  migration  or  importation  of  such  persons  as 
any  of  the  States  now  existing  shall  think  proper  to  admit,  shall  not 
he  prohihited  hy  the  Congress,  prior  to  the  year  1808,  hut  a  tax  or 
duty  may  he  imposed  on  such  importations,  not  exceeding  $10  for  each 
person."  On  the  last  argument  of  this  clause  no  reference  was  made 
to  this  clause  of  the  Constitution ;  nor  have  I  ever  heard  a  full  and 
satisfactory  argument  on  the  subject.  Yet,  on  a  full  examination  of 
this  clause,  connected  with  other  provisions  of  the  Constitution,  it  has 
had  a  controlling  influence  on  my  mind  in  the  determination  of  the 
case  before  us.  Some  of  ray  brethren  have  insisted  that  the  clause 
here  quoted  applies  exclusively  to  the  importation  of  slaves.  If  the 
phrase  "  the  migration  or  importation  of  such  persons"  was  intended 
by  the  convention  to  mean  slaves  only,  why,  in  the  assertion  of  the 
taxing  power,  did  they,  in  the  same  clause,  separate  migration  from 
importation,  and  use  the  following  language?  "But  a  tax  or  duty 
may  be  imposed  on  such  persons,  not  exceeding  $10  for  each  person." 
All  will  admit,  that  if  the  word  migration  were  excluded  from  the 
clause,  it  would  apply  to  slaves  only.  An  unsuccessful  attempt 
was  made  in  the  convention  to  amend  this  clause,  by  striking  out  the 
word  migration,  and  thereby  to  make  it  apply  to  slaves  exclusively. 
In  the  face  of  this  fact,  the  debates  in  the  convention,  certain  numbers 
of  the  Federalist,  together  with  Mr.  Madison's  report  to  the  legisla- 
ture of  Virginia  in  1799 — eleven  years  after  the  adoption  of  the  Con- 
stitution — are  relied  on  to  prove  that  the  words  migration  and  impor- 
tation are  synonymous,  within  the  true  intent  and  meaning  of  this 
clause.  The  acknowledged  accuracy  of  language  and  clearness  of  dic- 
tion in  the  Constitution  would  seem  to  forbid  the  imputation  of  so 
gross  an  error  to  the  distinguished  authors  of  that  instrument.    I  have 


been  unable  to  find  anything  in  the  debates  of  the  convention,  in  the 
Federalist,  or  the  report  of  Mr.  Madison,  inconsistent  with  the  con- 
struction here  given.  Were  they,  however,  directly  opposed  to  it, 
they  could  not,  by  any  known  rule  of  construction,  control  or  modify 
the  plain  and  unambiguous  language  of  the  clause  in  question.  The 
conclusion,  to  my  mind,  is  therefore  irresistible  that  there  are  two 
separate  and  distinct  classes  of  persons  intended  to  be  provided  for  by 
this  clause.  Although  they  are  both  subjects  of  commerce,  the  latter 
class  only  is  the  subject  of  trade  and  importation.  The  slaves  are  not 
immigrants,  and  had  no  exercise  of  volition  in  their  transportation 
from  Africa  to  the  United  States.  The  owner  was  bound  to  enter 
them  at  the  custom-house,  as  any  other  article  of  commerce  or  impor- 
tation, and  to  pay  the  duty  imposed  by  law  ;  whilst  the  persons  of 
the  first  class,  although  subjects  of  commerce,  had  the  free  exercise  of 
volition,  snd  could  remove  at  pleasure  from  one  place  to  another  ;  and 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND    PAUPERS.  149 

when  they  determined  to  migrate  or  remove  from  any  European  gov- 
ernment to  the  United  States,  they  voluntarily  dissolved  the  bond  of 
allegiance  to  their  sovereign,  with  the  intention  to  contract  a  tempo- 
rary or  permanent  allegiance  to  the  government  of  the  United  States, 
and  if  transported  in  an  American  ship,  that  allegiance  commenced 
the  moment  they  got  on  board.  They  were  subject  to,  protected  by^ 
the  laws  of  the  United  States  to  the  end  of  their  voyage.  Having 
thus  shown  that  there  are  two  separate  and  distinct  classes  included 
in,  and  provided  by,  the  clause  of  the  Constitution  referred  to,  the 
question  arises,  how  far  the  persons  of  the  first  class  are  protected  by 
the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States  from  the  operation  of 
the  statute  of  New  York  now  under  consideration  ?  The  power  was 
conferred  on  Congress  to  prohibit  migration  or  importation  of  such 
persons  into  all  the  new  States,  from  and  after  the  time  of  their  ad- 
mission into  the  Union,  because  the  exemption  from  the  prohibition 
of  Cone:ress  was  confined  exclusivelv  to  the  States  then  existino;,  and 
left  the  power  to  operate  upon  all  the  new  States  admitted  into  the 
Union  prior  to  1808.  Four  new  States  having  been  thus  admitted 
within  that  time,  it  follows,  beyond  controversy,  the  power  of  Congress 
over  the  whole  subject  of  migration  and  importation  was  comjilete 
throughout  the  United  States  after  1808, 

The  power  to  prohibit  the  admission  of  "  all  such  persons,"  includes 
necessarily,  the  power  to  admit  them  on  such  conditions  as  Congress 
may  think  proper  to  impose;  and,  therefore,  as  a  condition,  Congress 
has  the  unlimited  power  of  taxing  them.  If  this  reasoning  l)e  correct, 
the  whole  power  over  the  subject  belongs  exclusively  to  Congress,  and 
connects  itself  indissolubly  with  the  power  to  regulate  commerce  with 
foreign  nations.  How  far,  then,  are  these  immigrants  protected,  upon 
their  arrival  in  the  United  States,  against  the  power  of  State  statutes  ? 
The  ship,  the  cargo^  the  master,  the  crew,  and  the  passengers  are  all 
under  the  protection  of  the  laws  of  the  United  States  to  the  final  ter- 
mination of  the  voyage  ;  and  the  passengers  have  a  right  to  be  landed 
and  go  on  shore  under  the  protection  of  and  subject  to  these  laws  only, 
except  so  far  as  they  may  be  subject  to  the  quarantine  laws  of  the 
place  where  the}'  are  landed ;  which  laws  are  not  drawn  in  question 
in  this  controversy.  The  great  question  here  is,  where  does  the 
power  of  the  United  States  over  this  subject  end,  and  where  does  the 
State  power  begin?  This  is,  perhaps,  one  of  the  most  perplexing 
questions  ever  submitted  to  the  consideration  of  this  court. 

A  similar  question  arose  in  the  case  oi  Brown  v.  the  State  of  Mary- 
land, (12  Wheat.,  419,)  in  which  the  court  carried  out  the  power  of 
Congress  to  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations,  upon  the  subject 
then  under  consideration,  to  the  line  which  separates  it  from  the 
reserved  powers  of  the  States,  and  plainly  established  the  power  of 
the  States  over  the  same  subject-matter  beyond  that  line. 

The  clause  of  the  Constitution  already  referred  to  in  this  case,  taken 
in  connexion  with  the  provision  which  confers  on  Congress  the  power 
to  pass  all  laws  necessary  and  proper  for  carrying  into  effect  the  enu- 
merated and  all  other  powers  granted  by  the  Constitution,  seem  neces- 
sarily to  include  the  whole  power  over  this  subject;  and  the  Constitu- 
tion and  laws  of  the  United  States  being  the  supreme  law  of  the  land, 


150  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

State  power  cannot  be  extended  over  the  same  subject.  It  therefore 
follows  tliat  passengers  can  never  be  subject  to  State  laws  until  they 
become  a  portion  of  the  population  of  the  State,  temporarily  or  per- 
manently ;  and  this  view  of  the  subject  seems  to  be  fully  sustained  by 
the  case  above  referred  to.  Were  it  even  admitted  that  the  State  of 
New  York  had  power  to  pass  the  statute  under  consideration,  in  the 
absence  of  legislation  by  Congress  on  this  subject,  it  would  avail 
nothing  in  this  case,  because  the  whole  ground  had  been  occupied  by 
Congress  before  that  act  was  passed,  as  has  been  fully  shown  by  the 
preceding  opinion  of  my  brother  Catron.  The  laws  referred  to  in  that 
opinion  show  conclusively  that  the  passengers,  their  moneys,  their 
clothing,  their  baggage,  their  tools,  their  implements,  &c.,  are  per- 
mitted to  land  in  the  United  States  without  tax,  duty,  or  impost.  I 
therefore  concur  in  the  opinion,  that  the  judgment  of  the  court  below 
should  be  reversed. 


No.  3G. 


Justice  McLean  thus  distinctly  recognized  the  internal  police  power 
of  the  States: 

"The  acknowledged  police  power  of  a  State  extends  often  to  the 
destruction  of  property.  A  nuisance  may  be  abated.  Everything 
prejudicial  to  the  health  or  morals  of  a  city  may  be  removed.  Mer- 
chandise from  a  port  where  a  contagious  disease  prevails,  being  liable 
to  communicate  the  disease,  may  be  excluded ;  and,  in  extreme  cases, 
it  may  be  thrown  into  the  sea.  This  comes  in  direct  conflict  with  the 
regulations  of  commerce,  and  yet  no  one  doubts  the  local  power.  It  is 
a  power  essential  to  self-preservation,  and  exists,  necessarily,  in  every 
organized  community.  It  is,  indeed,  the  law  of  nature,  and  is  pos- 
sessed by  man  in  his  individual  ca])acity.  He  may  resist  that  which 
does  harm  him,  whether  he  be  assailed  by  an  assassin,  or  approached 
by  poison.  And  it  is  the  settled  construction  of  every  regulation  of 
commerce,  that,  under  the  sanction  of  its  general  laws,  no  person  can 
introduce  into  a  community  malignant  diseases,  or  anything  which 
contaminates  its  morals,  or  endangers  its  safety.  And  this  is  an  ac- 
knowledged principle  applicable  to  all  general  regulations.  Individ- 
uals, in  the  enjoyment  of  their  own  rights,  must  be  careful  not  to 
injure  the  rights  of  others. 

"From  the  explosive  nature  of  gunpowder,  a  city  may  exclude  it. 
Now  this  is  an  article  of  commerce  and  is  not  known  to  carry  infec- 
tious disease ;  yet,  to  guard  against  a  contingent  injury,  a  city  may 
prohibit  its  introduction.  These  exceptions  are  always  implied  in 
commercial  regulations,  where  the  general  government  is  admitted  to 
have  the  exclusive  power.  They  are  not  regulations  of  commerce,  but 
acts  of  self  preservation.  And  although  they  affect  commerce  to  some 
extent,  yet  such  effect  is  the  result  of  the  exercise  of  an  undoubted 
■power  in  the  State. 


FOREIGN    CRIMINALS   AND    PAUPERS.    '  151 


"In  all  matters  of  government,  and  especially  of  police,  a  wide  dis- 
cretion is  necessary.  It  is  not  susceptible  of  an  exact  limitation,  but 
must  be  exercised  under  the  changing  exigencies  of  society.  In  the 
progress  of  population,  of  wealth,  and  of  civilization,  new  and  vicious 
indulgences  spring  up^  which  require  restraints  that  can  only  be  im- 
posed by  the  legislative  power.  When  this  i)ower  shall  be  exerted, 
how  far  it  shall  be  carried  and  where  it  shall  cease,  must  mainly  de- 
pend upon  the  evil  to  be  remedied.  Under  the  pretence  of  a  police 
regulation,  a  State  cannot  counteract  the  commercial  power  of  Con- 
gress. And  yet,  as  has  been  shown,  to  guard  the  health,  morals,  and 
safety  of  the  community,  the  laws  of  a  State  may  prohibit  an  importer 
from  landing  his  goods,  and  may  sometimes  authorize  their  destruc- 
tion. But  this  exception  to  the  operation  of  the  general  commercial 
law  is  limited  to  the  existing  exigency. 

"  The  police  power  of  a  State  and  the  foreign  commercial  power  of 
Congress  must  stand  together.  Neither  of  them  can  be  so  exercised 
as  materially  to  affect  the  other.  The  sources  and  objects  of  these 
powers  are  exclusive,  distinct,  and  independent,  and  are  essential  to 
both  governments." 

And  Justice  Grier,  in  the  same  case,  said: 

It  has  been  frequently  decided  by  this  court,  "that  the  powers  which 
relate  to  merely  municipal  regulations,  or  Avhat  may  more  properly 
be  called  internal  police,  are  not  surrendered  by  the  States,  or  re- 
strained by  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States ;  and  that  conse- 
quently, in  relation  to  these,  the  authority  of  a  State  is  complete, 
unqualified  and  conclusive."  Without  attempting  to  define  what  are 
the  ])eculiar  subjects  or  limits  of  this  power,  it  may  safely  be  affirmed 
that  every  law  for  the  restraint  and  punishment  of  crime,  for  the  pre- 
servation of  the  public  j^eace,  health,  and  mnrals  must  come  within 
this  categorv. 

As  subjects  of  legislation,  they  are,  from  t'leir  very  nature,  of  pri- 
mary importance  ;  they  lie  at  the  foundation  of  social  existence ;  they 
are  for  the  protection  of  life  and  liberty,  and  necessarily  compel  all 
laws  on  subjects  of  secondary  importance,  which  relate  only  to  proj)- 
erty,  convenience,  or  luxury,  to  recede,  when  they  come  in  conflict  or 
collision .     ' '  Solus  popidi  suprema  lex. ' ' 

If  the  right  to  control  these  subjects  be  "  complete,  unqualified  and 
exclusive"  in  the  State  legislatures,  no  regulations  of  secondary  im- 
portance can  supersede  or  restrain  their  operations,  on  any  ground  of 
prerogative  or  supremacy.  The  exigencies  of  the  social  compact  re- 
quire that  such  laws  be  executed  before  and  above  all  others.  It  is 
for  this  reason  that  quarantine  laws,  which  protect  the  public  health, 
compel  mere  commercial  regulations  to  submit  to  their  control.  They 
restrain  the  liberty  of  the  passengers,  they  operate  on  the  ship  which 
is  the  instrument  of  commerce,  and  its  officers  and  crew,  the  agents 
of  navigation.  They  seize  the  infected  cargo,  and  cast  it  overboard. 
The  soldier  and  the  sailor,  though  in  the  service  of  the  government, 
are  arrested,  imprisoned,  and  punished  for  their  ofiences  against  soci- 
ety.    Paupers  and  convicts  are  refused  admission  into  the  country. 


152  FOREIGN    CRIMINALS    AND   PAUPERS. 

All  these  things  are  done,  not  from  any  power  which  the  States  assume 
to  re<2;ulate  commerce  or  to  interfere  with  the  regulations  of  Congress, 
but  because  police  laws  for  the  ])reservation  of  health,  prevention  of 
crime,  and  protection  of  the  public  welfare,  must  of  necessity  have 
full  and  free  operation,  according  to  the  exigency  which  requires  their 
interference. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 

325.1UN313F  C001 

FOREIGN  CRIMINALS  AND  PAUPERS  WASHINGTO 


2  031771683 


